Montana Public Service Commission election, 2018
- General election: Nov. 6
- Voter registration deadline: Oct. 9[2]
- Early voting: Oct. 9 - Nov. 5
- Absentee voting deadline: Nov. 6
- Online registration: No
- Same-day registration: Yes
- Voter ID: Non-photo ID required
- Poll times: Polling places open between 7:00 a.m. and 12:00 p.m. and close at 8:00 p.m.
2020 →
← 2016
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| Montana Public Service Commission |
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| Election details |
| Filing deadline: March 12, 2018 |
| Primary: June 5, 2018 General: November 6, 2018 Pre-election incumbent(s): Travis Kavulla (Republican) (District 1) Brad Johnson (Republican) (District 5) |
| How to vote |
| Poll times: 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. Voting in Montana |
| Ballotpedia analysis |
| Federal and state primary competitiveness State executive elections in 2018 Impact of term limits in 2018 State government trifectas State government triplexes Ballotpedia's Election Analysis Hub, 2018 |
| Montana executive elections |
| Public service commissioner |
Montana held an election for public service commissioner on November 6, 2018. The candidate filing deadline was March 12, 2018.
Candidates and election results
District 1
General election
General election for Montana Public Service Commission District 1
Randy Pinocci defeated Doug Kaercher in the general election for Montana Public Service Commission District 1 on November 6, 2018.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ |  | Randy Pinocci (R) | 59.6 | 44,990 |
| Doug Kaercher (D) | 40.4 | 30,463 | ||
| Total votes: 75,453 | |||
 = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
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Democratic primary election
Democratic primary for Montana Public Service Commission District 1
Doug Kaercher advanced from the Democratic primary for Montana Public Service Commission District 1 on June 5, 2018.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | Doug Kaercher | 100.0 | 14,470 | |
| Total votes: 14,470 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
Republican primary election
Republican primary for Montana Public Service Commission District 1
Randy Pinocci defeated Rob Cook, Mark Wicks, and Cory McKinney in the Republican primary for Montana Public Service Commission District 1 on June 5, 2018.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Randy Pinocci | 34.6 | 8,141 |
 | Rob Cook | 30.9 | 7,273 | |
 | Mark Wicks | 19.9 | 4,669 | |
| Cory McKinney | 14.6 | 3,433 | ||
| Total votes: 23,516 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
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District 5
General election
General election for Montana Public Service Commission District 5
Incumbent Brad Johnson defeated Andy Shirtliff in the general election for Montana Public Service Commission District 5 on November 6, 2018.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ |  | Brad Johnson (R) | 57.8 | 60,434 |
 | Andy Shirtliff (D) | 42.2 | 44,103 | |
| Total votes: 104,537 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
Democratic primary election
Democratic primary for Montana Public Service Commission District 5
Andy Shirtliff defeated Tyrel Suzor-Hoy and Henry Clay Speich in the Democratic primary for Montana Public Service Commission District 5 on June 5, 2018.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Andy Shirtliff | 64.3 | 12,783 |
 | Tyrel Suzor-Hoy | 22.0 | 4,382 | |
| Henry Clay Speich | 13.7 | 2,729 | ||
| Total votes: 19,894 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
Republican primary election
Republican primary for Montana Public Service Commission District 5
Incumbent Brad Johnson advanced from the Republican primary for Montana Public Service Commission District 5 on June 5, 2018.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Brad Johnson | 100.0 | 29,589 |
| Total votes: 29,589 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
State overview
Partisan control
This section details the partisan control of federal and state positions in Montana heading into the 2018 elections.
Congressional delegation
- Following the 2016 elections, Republicans and Democrats each held one U.S. Senate seat.
- Republicans held Montana's At-Large Congressional District.
State executives
- As of September 2018, Republicans held six of 11 state executive positions, Democrats held two, and the remaining positions were officially nonpartisan.
- The governor of Montana was Democrat Steve Bullock. The state held elections for governor and lieutenant governor on November 3, 2020.
State legislature
- Republicans controlled both chambers of the Montana State Legislature. They had a 59-41 majority in the state House and a 32-18 majority in the state Senate.
Trifecta status
- Montana was under divided government, meaning that the two parties shared control of the state government. Steve Bullock (D) served as governor, while Republicans controlled the state legislature.
2018 elections
- See also: Montana elections, 2018
Montana held elections for the following positions in 2018:
- One U.S. Senate seat
- One U.S. House seats
- One state executive position
- 25 of 50 state Senate seats
- 100 state House seats
Demographics
| Demographic data for Montana | ||
|---|---|---|
| Montana | U.S. | |
| Total population: | 1,032,073 | 316,515,021 |
| Land area (sq mi): | 145,546 | 3,531,905 |
| Race and ethnicity** | ||
| White: | 89.2% | 73.6% |
| Black/African American: | 0.5% | 12.6% |
| Asian: | 0.7% | 5.1% |
| Native American: | 6.5% | 0.8% |
| Pacific Islander: | 0.1% | 0.2% |
| Two or more: | 2.5% | 3% |
| Hispanic/Latino: | 3.3% | 17.1% |
| Education | ||
| High school graduation rate: | 92.8% | 86.7% |
| College graduation rate: | 29.5% | 29.8% |
| Income | ||
| Median household income: | $47,169 | $53,889 |
| Persons below poverty level: | 17% | 11.3% |
| Source: U.S. Census Bureau, "American Community Survey" (5-year estimates 2010-2015) Click here for more information on the 2020 census and here for more on its impact on the redistricting process in Montana. **Note: Percentages for race and ethnicity may add up to more than 100 percent because respondents may report more than one race and the Hispanic/Latino ethnicity may be selected in conjunction with any race. Read more about race and ethnicity in the census here. | ||
As of July 2016, Montana's three largest cities were Billings (pop. est. 109,642), Missoula (pop. est. 73,340), and Great Falls (pop. est. 58,876).[3][4]
State election history
This section provides an overview of federal and state elections in Montana from 2000 to 2016. All data comes from the Montana Secretary of State.
Historical elections
Presidential elections, 2000-2016
This chart shows the results of the presidential election in Montana every year from 2000 to 2016.
| Election results (President of the United States), Montana 2000-2016 | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | First-place candidate | First-place candidate votes (%) | Second-place candidate | Second-place candidate votes (%) | Margin of victory (%) |
| 2016 |  Donald Trump |
55.6% |  Hillary Clinton |
35.4% | 20.2% |
| 2012 | Mitt Romney |
55.3% | Barack Obama |
41.7% | 13.6% |
| 2008 | John McCain |
49.5% | Barack Obama |
47.2% | 2.3% |
| 2004 | George W. Bush |
59.1% | John Kerry |
38.6% | 20.5% |
| 2000 | George W. Bush |
58.4% | Al Gore |
33.4% | 25.0% |
U.S. Senate elections, 2000-2016
This chart shows the results of U.S. Senate races in Montana from 2000 to 2016. Every state has two Senate seats, and each seat goes up for election every six years. The terms of the seats are staggered so that roughly one-third of the seats are up every two years.
| Election results (U.S. Senator), Montana 2000-2016 | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | First-place candidate | First-place candidate votes (%) | Second-place candidate | Second-place candidate votes (%) | Margin of victory (%) |
| 2014 | Steve Daines |
57.9% | Amanda Curtis |
40.0% | 17.9% |
| 2012 | Jon Tester |
48.6% | Denny Rehberg |
44.6% | 4.0% |
| 2008 | Max Baucus |
72.9% | Bob Kelleher |
27.1% | 45.8% |
| 2006 | Jon Tester |
49.2% | Conrad Burns |
48.3% | 0.9% |
| 2002 | Max Baucus |
62.7% | Mike Taylor |
31.7% | 31.0% |
| 2000 | Conrad Burns |
50.6% | Brian Schweitzer |
47.2% | 3.4% |
Gubernatorial elections, 2000-2016
This chart shows the results of the four gubernatorial elections held between 2000 and 2016. Gubernatorial elections are held every four years in Montana.
| Election results (Governor), Montana 2000-2016 | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | First-place candidate | First-place candidate votes (%) | Second-place candidate | Second-place candidate votes (%) | Margin of victory (%) |
| 2016 | Steve Bullock |
50.2% | Greg Gianforte |
46.4% | 3.8% |
| 2012 | Steve Bullock |
48.9% | Jon Sonju |
47.3% | 1.6% |
| 2008 | Brian Schweitzer |
65.5% | Roy Brown |
32.5% | 33.0% |
| 2004 | Brian Schweitzer |
50.4% | Bob Brown |
46.0% | 4.4% |
| 2000 | Judy Martz |
51.0% | Mark O'Keefe |
47.1% | 3.9% |
Congressional delegation, 2000-2016
This chart shows the number of Democrats and Republicans who were elected to represent Montana in the U.S. House from 2000 to 2016. Elections for U.S. House seats are held every two years.
| Congressional delegation, Montana 2000-2016 | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Republicans | Republicans (%) | Democrats | Democrats (%) | Balance of power |
| 2016 | 1 |
100% | 0 |
0% | R+1 |
| 2014 | 1 |
100% | 0 |
0% | R+1 |
| 2012 | 1 |
100% | 0 |
0% | R+1 |
| 2010 | 1 |
100% | 0 |
0% | R+1 |
| 2008 | 1 |
100% | 0 |
0% | R+1 |
| 2006 | 1 |
100% | 0 |
0% | R+1 |
| 2004 | 1 |
100% | 0 |
0% | R+1 |
| 2002 | 1 |
100% | 0 |
0% | R+1 |
| 2000 | 1 |
100% | 0 |
0% | R+1 |
Trifectas, 1992-2017
A state government trifecta occurs when one party controls both chambers of the state legislature and the governor's office.
Montana Party Control: 1992-2025
No Democratic trifectas • Fifteen years of Republican trifectas
Scroll left and right on the table below to view more years.
| Year | 92 | 93 | 94 | 95 | 96 | 97 | 98 | 99 | 00 | 01 | 02 | 03 | 04 | 05 | 06 | 07 | 08 | 09 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 21 | 22 | 23 | 24 | 25 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Governor | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | R | R | R | R | R |
| Senate | D | D | D | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | D | D | D | D | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R |
| House | D | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | S | S | R | R | S | S | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R |
Recent news
The link below is to the most recent stories in a Google news search for the terms Montana public service commissioner election 2018. These results are automatically generated from Google. Ballotpedia does not curate or endorse these articles.
See also
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Montana government: |
Elections: |
Ballotpedia exclusives: |
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ If one missed the Oct. 9 deadline, he or she could have still voted in the election by registering in person at the county election office. Late registration was available until the close of polls on Election Day.
- ↑ If one missed the Oct. 9 deadline, he or she could have still voted in the election by registering in person at the county election office. Late registration was available until the close of polls on Election Day.
- ↑ Montana Demographics, "Montana Cities by Population," accessed September 4, 2018
- ↑ U.S. Census Bureau, "Quickfacts Montana," accessed September 4, 2018
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