Ryan Zinke

Zinke publicly declared victory before all votes were counted in Lincoln County, having held a roughly 1,000-vote lead over Olszewski since Tuesday night. In a statement posted on Facebook, Zinke said his win came in spite of critical messaging and attack ads from Republicans and Democrats throughout the primary.

“Thank you Western Montana for your confidence that America can be fixed and for ignoring the political BS,” said Zinke, who also thanked former President Donald Trump, Gov. Greg Gianforte and U.S. Sen. Steve Daines for their endorsements. “We have a great team and dedicated volunteers who believe in American values. I look forward to working with Congressman Rosendale on solving the hard issues that face America and the Great State of Montana. One State. Two US Representatives, one fight for freedom.”

 
 

MARA SILVERS

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Mara writes about health and human services stories happening in local communities, the Montana statehouse and the court system. She also produces the Shared State podcast in collaboration with MTPR and YPR. Before joining Montana Free Press, Mara worked in podcast and radio production at Slate and WNYC. She was born and raised in Helena, MT and graduated from Seattle University in 2016.