Democrat Sam Forstag wins election to U.S. House in Montana’s 1st Congressional District

By The Associated Press
November 05 2026 09:03 AM

Democrat Sam Forstag won election Thursday to the U.S. House of Representatives representing Montana’s 1st Congressional District, defeating Republican Aaron Flint. Forstag is a labor union leader and Forest Service smokejumper, a specialized firefighter who gets to fires by aircraft and parachute. He organized efforts opposing the job cuts at the Forest Service and other public lands agencies orchestrated by Trump’s Department of Government Efficiency. Flint is a conservative talk radio host and former aide to retiring Republican Rep. Ryan Zinke. He also spent more than 20 years in the Army National Guard and Reserves, and he served in Iraq and Afghanistan. The Associated Press declared Forstag the winner at 12:02 p.m. EST.

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