Let me start by saying this is my opinion alone, as a somewhat keen observer of our state politics here in Montana. I am in no way affiliated with the campaign or anyone close to it. Our state is a tough one for Democrats, that’s no secret. It also can be a tough one for women candidates. We sent the first woman to Congress, and haven’t sent one since, to either chamber. But there’s also a streak of independence here, and a desire for our elected representatives to actually, you know, represent us, both in biography and in face time with their constituents. It is on those principles that Kathleen Williams has based her run against Montana’s deplorable, Greg Gianforte (he of the Ben Jacobs assault).
I attended the convention of a broad-based farm organization in Montana. Politicians stopping by our annual convention is nothing new, and in fact is expected in an election year. Most come in, shake a few hands, talk for 10 minutes or so, and are whisked away by waiting staff. 2/3 of our state delegation has not ever been present at our annual meeting, instead choosing to send videos, letters, and delegate the responsibility to staff (bet you can’t guess which 2). All of that background is to say how impressed I was with Kathleen Williams when she stopped by this weekend. She came in during a reception that’s held annually on the Friday night of the annual meeting. She came in quietly, but I watched her walk around the room, and I mean this when I say it: I believe she shook every single person’s hand in the room, over 100. She then got up and spoke to us, echoing the themes of her campaign: fix healthcare, work on smart trade for rural America, but mostly, listen to Montanans and represent their concerns on the Hill. Basically, the antithesis of our current blowhard congressman. In total, she was in the room for nearly an hour, if not a little more. She came to us as she does to most meetings, I’m told: she wasn't boastful, she didn’t carry the swagger of a politician, and she listened to our membership before speaking to us.
Last evening, I attended a GOTV rally where Senator Tester, Williams, and a host of candidates spoke. Again, I was impressed. It occurred to me that she’s just doing what she’s always done: she just keeps showing up. She keeps working, keeps coming after it, doggedly yet quietly. She’s spent a ton of time in the small towns of eastern Montana, where she won’t win and she knows it. Same for the lumber towns in our northwest. But she’s there, she keeps showing up and listening, and perhaps the margins will be a bit smaller than in the past.
When I had the chance to meet her last weekend, I explicitly thanked her for running, and for running the race she’s run. It’s a steep hill; I think she’s run the perfect race, and it’s possible she’ll still be 2-4% short in the end. But she’s provided a future blueprint, for herself and other future dems, for how to run an insurgent campaign against powerful incumbency in this state. If you link to the Gravis poll showing her tied this morning, you’ll see a clear trend (albeit with a small sampling of polling) since mid-September that shows her closing to this current tied state. I think she has a real chance. And what a great thing that’d be for Montana, having someone there to represent us in the House for a change.