Pete Buttigieg Endorses Independent Seth Bodnar in Montana Senate Race

The unexpected show of support came with the Republican candidate leading in the polls.

Former U.S. Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg speaks during media day of the Detroit Auto Show in Detroit, Michigan, U.S. January 14, 2026. REUTERS/Rebecca Cook

Pete Buttigieg has made a shock endorsement in the Montana Senate race.

The former transportation secretary, 44, broke ranks with the Democratic Party to endorse independent candidate Seth Bodnar over Democratic nominee Alani Bankhead.

Pete Buttigieg speaks on stage during the "The Future of Mobility" Panel for The Atlantic Festival 2024 on September 19, 2024, in Washington, DC.

Pete Buttigieg endorsed the independent candidate in the Montana Senate race.

Tasos Katopodis/Getty Images for The Atlantic

“The best leaders I’ve served with, in uniform and in government, care more about getting the job done than about who gets the credit, and Seth is one of them,” Buttigieg said in a statement first shared with ABC News. “Seth and I don’t agree on everything, but he has spent his adult life serving this country and the next generation… and he’ll bring that same character to the Senate on behalf of all Montanans.”

“Montana deserves a senator who will fight corruption in Washington, defend reproductive freedom, and work across the aisle to lower costs and actually get things done,” he added. “Seth Bodnar will be that Senator.”

Nov 22, 2025; Missoula, MT, USA; University of Montana President Seth Bodnar looks on before the game between the Montana Grizzlies and the Montana State Bobcats at Washington-Grizzly Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Michael Thomas Shroyer-Imagn Images

Independent candidate Seth Bodnar was a Green Beret and former president of the University of Montana.

Michael Thomas Shroyer/Imagn Images via Reuters Connect

The statement did not mention Bankhead, who is also running against Republican candidate Kurt Alme for the open Senate seat held by retiring Republican Sen. Steve Daines. Polls show Alme leading his opponents by double digits, though at least three surveys gave Bodnar a two- to six-point lead.

Bankhead, a retired Air Force lieutenant colonel and federal agent, said in an interview with PBS News last week that the Democratic National Committee offered her a job—“the DNC’s head of female veteran candidates or something like that”—in exchange for dropping out of the race.

“And I was like, ‘Why would I go work for an organization that is actively working against me and stabbing me in the back?’” she said. “Like, no, I’m not going to do that, so. And I can’t be bought anyway, but that was the only thing that was put on the table.”

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The DNC has denied Bankhead’s claim.

LIVINGSTON, MONTANA - JULY14: Democrat Alani Bankhead address the Park County Democratic Central Committee while campaigning for the Montana Senate seat on July14, 2026 in Livingston, Montana. The seat is currently held by Republican Steve Daines who is not running for reelection (Photo by William Campbell/Getty Images)

Democratic nominee Alani Bankhead has refused to drop out of the Montana Senate race.

William Campbell/Getty Images

Bodnar, meanwhile, said he was honored to have Buttigieg’s support. A Green Beret, Bodnar served as president of the University of Montana for eight years.

The independent, 47, said he was “proud that people across the political spectrum are joining this campaign.”

“Montanans have always voted for the person, not the party, and they want a senator who will put their families, jobs, and public lands ahead of partisan games in Washington. I’ll answer to Montana, and I’ll work with anyone who’s willing to do the same,” he said.

Democratic Senate nominees in deep-red Nebraska, Idaho, and South Dakota have dropped out of their races to clear the way for independent candidates, hoping to draw in voters who would never pick a Democrat.

But Bankhead, 44, thinks the strategy will hurt the party in the long term.

“If you want to rehabilitate the brand, then you do it by rehabilitating the brand, not supporting independents,” she told The Washington Post.

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