2002 United States House of Representatives election in Montana

The 2002 United States House of Representatives election in Montana was held on November 5, 2002, to determine who will represent the state of Montana in the United States House of Representatives. Montana had one at-large district in the House, apportioned according to the 2000 United States census, due to its low population. Representatives are elected for two-year terms.

2002 United States House of Representatives election in Montana

← 2000 November 5, 2002 2004 →

Nominee Denny Rehberg Steve Kelly Party Republican Democratic Popular vote 214,100 108,233 Percentage 64.62% 32.67%

County results Rehberg:      50–60%      60–70%      70–80%      80–90% Kelly:      50–60%

U.S. Representative before election Denny Rehberg Republican Elected U.S. Representative Denny Rehberg Republican

Republican Denny Rehberg, the former lieutenant governor of Montana, sought re-election to a second term in the United States House of Representatives, winning the party's renomination unopposed in the June 4 primary. Two Democrats — rancher Robert Candee and small business owner Steve Kelly — sought their party's nomination; Kelly ultimately prevailed with 74 percent of the vote in the primary. In the general election, Rehberg won with almost 65 percent of the vote to Kelly's 33 percent, while Libertarian Mike Fellows received nearly 3 percent.

Background

Kelly, the Democratic nominee, had previously run for office as both an independent and a Republican, in 1994 running as an independent candidate for the US House and earning 9 percent of the vote, and in 1998 running as a candidate in the Republican primary for Gallatin County Commissioner. Kelly observed that his independent candidacy eight years earlier had displeased some Democrats, who felt that he pulled votes from the Democratic nominee; however, Kelly observed that the Democrat still won the race, so he was not a spoiler.^[1]

Democratic primary

Candidates

• Robert Candee, rancher^[1]
• Steve Kelly, businessman and 1994 independent candidate for Congress^[1]

Results

Democratic primary results^[2]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic	Steve Kelly	40,441	74.28%
	Democratic	Robert Candee	14,003	25.72%
Total votes			54,444	100.0%

Republican primary

Candidates

• Denny Rehberg, incumbent, former Lieutenant Governor of Montana (1990–1996), and 1996 Republican Senate nominee

Results

Republican primary results^[2]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Denny Rehberg (incumbent)	83,617	100%
Total votes			83,617	100.0%

General election

Predictions

Source	Ranking	As of
Sabato's Crystal Ball[3]	Safe R	November 4, 2002
New York Times[4]	Safe R	October 14, 2002

Campaign

Rehberg won the endorsement of the Montana Teamsters Union, the first time in Montana history that the union endorsed a Republican statewide candidate.^[5] The candidates' first debate was held on June 22, at the annual convention of the Montana Newspaper Association.^[6]

Results

Montana At-large congressional district election, 2002^[7]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Denny Rehberg (inc.)	214,100	64.62
	Democratic	Steve D. Kelly	108,233	32.67
	Libertarian	Mike Fellows	8,988	2.71
Total votes			331,321	100.00
	Republican hold

Counties that flipped from Democratic to Republican

• Missoula (Largest city: Missoula)
• Cascade (largest city: Great Falls)
• Lewis and Clark (largest city: Helena)
• Rosebud (largest city: Colstrip)
• Roosevelt (largest city: Wolf Point)
• Hill (largest city: Havre)
• Blaine (largest city: Chinooko)
• Sheridan (Largest city: Plentywood)

Aftermath

Kelly would go on to be the Green nominee for Senate in 2018, although he would be removed from the ballot prior to Election Day.^[8]