GREAT FALLS — Denny Rehberg, Montana's former U.S. Representative in Congress, announced on Wednesday, February 21, 2024, that he has joined the race for Montana's Second Congressional District seat in the U.S. House of Representatives.
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Rehberg, now 68 years old, served as Montana’s lone Representative from 2000 to 2012. He left politics after unsuccessfully challenging incumbent U.S. Senator John Tester in 2012. He then went on to own several fast-food franchises, mostly Popeye's Chicken and Burger King, in Montana.
Rehberg said earlier this month that he had no plans to run for Congress until he learned his name was being tested in a poll for imcumbent U.S. Rep. Matt Rosendale’s seat.
Rehberg said in an email announcing his candidacy:
Joe Biden is making America unrecognizable – and I want our country back,” Rehberg said. “I am a fifth generation Montana rancher. I got into public service because I was moved by past generations of Montanans. I want to return to public service because I am worried about future generations of Montanans. The number one question people ask me is: why are you running for Congress again? It’s a simple one-word answer: Grandkids - I want to ensure there is a country left for our grandkids.
State Auditor Troy Downing, Superintendent of Public Instruction Elsie Arntzen, former state Senator Ric Holden, and state Senate President Pro Tem Ken Bogner are among the candidates vying for the seat.
Rehberg is a fifth-generation rancher from Billings. He says he believes his seniority would set him apart in the crowded field, but acknowledges the political landscape has changed dramatically in his 12 years since leaving office and that the country is especially divided when it comes to presidential politics.
The Second Congressional District includes Billings, Great Falls, and much of eastern Montana.
Here is an interview with Rehberg from earlier this month:
