BOZEMAN — Several hours before former President Donald Trump was set to begin speaking at a Friday night rally in Bozeman, the crowds were already building outside Brick Breeden Fieldhouse.
Republican leaders hope that energy will carry on into the November election.
“It’ll be a hell of a party,” said Tim Sheehy, the Republican nominee for one of Montana’s two U.S. Senate seats.
Trump is making the trip to Montana to rally local Republicans for the election — and particularly to boost Sheehy’s challenge to Democratic U.S. Sen. Jon Tester. He provided a key endorsement to Sheehy during the GOP Senate primary.
Sheehy says Trump’s fully engaged in the Senate race, and that shows the national importance of Montana’s seat — which analysts say could determine which party controls the Senate next year.
He said the enthusiasm at events like this is a good sign.
“Hugely positive vibes — you can feel the momentum,” Sheehy said. “People are ready to go."
Sheehy says Trump needs supporters in the Senate if he’s reelected. He wants to see Trump’s speech Friday draw a clear contrast for voters.
“The most important thing is just zero in on the issues,” he said. “We’ve got to remind Montanans what’s at stake this election, and what’s at stake is very simple – open borders, cheap gas, safe streets, common-sense policies to bring inflation down, make life affordable for Montanans again.”
As early as 7 a.m., people were already lining up outside the fieldhouse. A string of Trump merchandise sellers were also doing brisk business along the streets and in nearby parking lots.
The rally is a jolt of excitement for committed Trump supporters — and Jeremy Johnson, who chairs the Political Science Department at Carroll Colllege — says that’s exactly the audience for it.
“These rallies are not intended to really reach the undecided voter or to broaden the base,” he said. “It’s very much about the base; it’s very much about preaching to the choir.”
Johnson said Trump generally gives similar speeches at his rallies across the country, and many in the audience will likely be waiting for some of the familiar lines.
This will be Trump’s first rally since Democratic Vice President Kamala Harris announced Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz as her running mate, and Johnson expects Trump will try out some attacks against Walz in front of the audience in Bozeman.
“One thing Trump does do is he wants to see what lines resonate with crowds, and those are the lines that he sticks with,” he said. “In 2016, ‘Build the Wall,’ that got a lot of applause at these rallies. So that's the type of thing that he's sort of testing out messaging live.”
Trump traveled to Montana four times in 2018 to rally against Tester in his last run for reelection, and Tester prevailed.
However, Johnson said there are indications that Trump’s rallies nationwide at least raised enthusiasm among voters in the Republican base, who might not have been as excited to vote in a midterm election.
“They help from a baseline, even if it's not going to be transformative,” he said.
