After Months Hidden Away by His Party Bosses, Kurt Alme Will Finally Face Seth Bodnar and Montanans

Installed by party bosses and hiding from voters for months, Alme skipped forum after forum and forced the cancellation of the MTFP/Nonstop Local debate.

MISSOULA, MT — On Sunday, October 11, Steve Daines’ anointed successor Kurt Alme will finally do what former Green Beret and Independent candidate Seth Bodnar has done all year: stand in front of Montanans and answer questions. It will be Alme's first time sharing a stage with any of his opponents.

Alme skipped the American Association of University Women forum in Glendive, the Indivisible Missoula forum, the Montana Electric Cooperatives Association forum in Great Falls, and the Beer, Buds, Big Sky debate. And when he refused to participate in the debate hosted by Montana Free Press and Nonstop Local, which was scheduled for October 7th, the debate was cancelled altogether, robbing Montanans of a chance to hear from every candidate side by side.

“Kurt Alme was anointed by Washington, D.C. insiders eight minutes before the filing deadline, and he's spent this entire campaign showing Montanans he’ll be a rubber-stamp for Party bosses in the U.S. Senate,” said Bodnar campaign spokesperson Kelly Webster. “He's ducked voters for months, and this week he told Montanans that Congress 'can't vote to limit the use of force' in a war it never authorized, a war Montana families are paying for every time they fill up their gas tanks. On Sunday, he doesn't get to hide behind his party bosses anymore. He'll have to answer to Montanans, and to Seth Bodnar.”

While Alme hid from voters, Seth Bodnar has consistently met them. Since launching his campaign in March, Bodnar has held events open to the public in every corner of the state, from Glasgow to Libby to Lame Deer, taking every question from Montanans of every political stripe. According to recent polling, Bodnar currently leads Democrat Alani Bankhead by 18 points, and after voters hear his message, he leads the race outright over Republican Kurt Alme. As voters continue to learn about Bankhead's past ties to far-right, anti-choice, and anti-LGBTQ institutions — and Alme's socking record declining to prosecute up to 79 percent of sexual abuse cases as U.S. Attorney — Republicans, Democrats and Independents are consolidating around Seth Bodnar.

Seth Bodnar is a Green Beret, business leader, and former president of the University of Montana running for the U.S. Senate to be an independent voice for Montana. Seth is guided by a lifelong commitment to duty, honor, and country. He graduated first in his class at West Point and served multiple overseas deployments, leading soldiers in the 101st Airborne Division and the 1st Special Forces Group, and serving as a special advisor to the commanding general in Iraq. After his military service and a successful career in business, Seth spent the last eight years leading the University of Montana. Under his leadership, the university achieved record high graduation rates, doubled research funding, launched the largest infrastructure renewal in campus history, restored financial stability, and was named the #1 military-friendly university in the country. Raised by two public school teachers, he believes leadership is about service, not party loyalty. Seth and his wife, a fifth-generation Montanan, are raising their three children in Montana.

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