As Governor Steve Bullock begins his final term, the Democrat is starting to raise money with ambitions of stepping onto the national political stage. Bullock filed paperwork with federal election regulators, Tuesday, creating the Big Sky Values political action committee. The PAC will pay for Bullock to travel around the country and give speeches.
Bullock will term out as governor in 2020. That year, Democrats will be looking for a challenger for the U.S. Senate seat currently held by Republican Steve Daines, and a candidate to run against President Donald Trump.
Bullock says it’s too early to talk about his plans for when his term ends. But Robert Saldin, a political science professor at the University of Montana, says this confirm whispers among Democrats, that Bullock could be an option for national office 2020.
“This is clearly the kind of stuff that you do if you’re interested in becoming president, or even if you just want to consider it," says Saldin.
Saldin says Bullock is entering a national conversation where Democrats are battling among themselves, trying to decide what the party is going to look like in the future, after suffering losses, and the presidency, last November.