MTPR is airing interviews with candidates running for federal office in 2026. MTPR's Austin Amestoy speaks with Seth Bodnar, an independent running for U.S. Senate.
Austin Amestoy: Why are you the best person for this job?
Seth Bodnar: Well, look, I'm the son of two public school teachers. I joined the military at the age of 18. I've served one of our great public universities for the past eight years. My life has been defined by service and uniting people around solving complex challenges. And I'm running because I believe Montanans deserve an independent voice in the U.S. Senate who's going to stand up and fight for them; work across partisan divides to solve some of the complex challenges that we face as a state and as a country.
Austin Amestoy: And I think your prior experience as president at the University of Montana is probably the experience that most Montanans are most familiar with when it comes to your background. But tell us a little bit more about your prior experience and how those experiences will inform your work in the Senate if elected.
Seth Bodnar: Yeah, look, we here at the University of Montana — I had the opportunity to work with Montanans from every part of this great state: Republicans, Democrats, Independents. And we united around a common mission: to expand opportunity for every single Montanan and to fuel the growth of our state's economy. You know, my life — my career — has been about solving problems. And I think I'm like most Montanans. I'm fed up by the toxic partisanship that is preventing us from addressing the challenges facing this country.
We see power bounce back and forth and working-class Montanans just continue to see costs continue to rise, opportunities continue to decrease and we're at risk of handing over a country to our kids that's less prosperous, less secure, more divided, more in debt and in which they have fewer rights than the country that we grew up in and I believe there's a better way.
Austin Amestoy: Would you caucus with both parties?
Seth Bodnar: Well, look, I've said again and again, I'm not going to be a foot soldier for either of these parties. You know, when I joined the U.S. Military, I swore an oath of allegiance to the Constitution of the United States, not to a political party. And I intend to go– I am going to work my tail off over the next seven months, getting every nook and cranny of this state to win the support of Republicans, of Democrats, of Independents. And I intended to go to the U.S. Senate and be a foot soldier for the people of this great state.
Austin Amestoy: I want to ask you a few policy questions now on some topics I know are top of mind for listeners, the first being healthcare. How do you think Congress should address the cost of health care in the United States?
Seth Bodnar: Well, look, that is a huge challenge. And I think it starts with not passing bills that not only add $4 trillion to the national debt, like we saw last summer, but result in 30,000-plus Montanans losing their healthcare. And that's going to result in more than a $5 billion impact to Montana's hospitals, likely to result in the closure of rural hospitals across our great state, decreasing access, decreasing the quality of care. There is a better way.
We need to address prescription drug prices. We need address inefficiencies in the system. There are ways to ensure that we have quality healthcare that is accessible and affordable. The solutions are there, but we have to actually roll up our sleeves and do the work and work across partisan divides to serve Montanans. And that's what we're not seeing in Congress right now.
Austin Amestoy: Where do you stand on the Trump administration's approach to immigration enforcement that we've seen over the last year, and what role do you think Congress should have in immigration enforcement?
Seth Bodnar: First and foremost, I believe we need strong borders in this country. You can't be a nation state without enforcing your immigration laws, and I think most Americans agree on that. I think we also can agree that we can enforce those immigration laws without treating our fellow human beings like animals and without trampling on the individual liberties of citizens. Again, there are solutions out there for comprehensive immigration reform.
In fact, we saw some of those proposed before the 2024 election, and those were put on hold because it was wanted to be used as a weapon to win an election. We need leaders who stop focusing on fighting and dividing Americans just to win elections and who are focused on solving problems for the American people. That's the type of independent leadership that I intend to provide for the people of this great state.
Austin Amestoy: Traveling the state, talking to Montanans, what do you hear as the most common, consistent priority that they're saying, "I want you to help us fix this problem?" What do hear?
Seth Bodnar: I'm hearing just from families, people of all ages that are just struggling to make the Montana way of life a reality and they don't see people in Washington who are there fighting for them. We need leaders who see leadership as service, not as privilege, and I think what I'm hearing again and again from Montanans is they want somebody who's going to go and fight for them.
