Former Navy SEAL officer and businessman Tim Sheehy announced Tuesday that he’s running as a Republican in the race for Democratic U.S. Sen. Jon Tester’s seat in 2024.
After deployments in Iraq, Afghanistan, South America and elsewhere, Sheehy founded aerial firefighting company Bridger Aerospace in Belgrade in 2014.
In a statement, Sheehy took aim at Tester, saying in part “Jon Tester has been in office for nearly a quarter of a century and he’s lost sight of our Montana values.” The statement said Sheehy intends to bring “strong conservative leadership” to Congress.
Sheehy’s announcement comes after months of rumored recruitment by GOP party leaders seeking a candidate positioned to challenge Tester, who announced his campaign for reelection in February.
In a statement, Republican Sen. Steve Daines, who chairs the committee tasked with electing republicans to the U.S. Senate, said he “could not be happier” Sheehy decided to enter the race.
