AARP Hearing Center
In a race that could determine the control of the Senate, Tim Sheehy (R) leads Senator Jon Tester (D) 51% to 45%, and with strong support from voters 50-plus, he is ahead by 16 points. Former President Donald Trump is also leading Vice President Kamala Harris 56% to 41% in the race for Montana’s four electoral votes, with an even larger 23 point spread among voters 50-plus.
![Montana State Capitol Building Montana State Capitol Building](https://cdn.aarp.net/content/dam/aarpe/en/home/pri/topics/voter-research/politics/montana-older-voter-survey-2024/_jcr_content/root/container_main/container_body_main/container_body1/container_body_cf/body_one_cf_one/par1/articlecontentfragmeImage1/cfimage.coreimg.75.932.jpeg/content/dam/aarp/research/topics/voter-opinion-research/politics/montana-state-capitol-building.jpg)
Candidates looking to increase their share of the most reliable electorate have an opportunity to win the support of these voters over the coming weeks by addressing their top issues.
While immigration and rising prices are top issues for voters in Montana, the majority of voters 50-plus say Social Security, Medicare, policies that help people remain in their homes as they age, cost of utilities, and prescription drug prices are all extremely or very important issues they will consider when deciding how to vote.
Moreover, Montana voters 50-plus say they would be more likely to vote for candidates who commit to protecting Social Security and supporting family caregivers.
Methodology
AARP commissioned the bipartisan polling team of Fabrizio Ward (R) & David Binder Research (D) to conduct a survey of voters in Montana. The firms interviewed 1,064 likely voters, which includes a statewide representative sample of 600 likely voters, and an oversample of 464 likely voters 50 and older. The survey was conducted August 25–29, 2024 via live interviewer on landline (25%) and cellphone (35%), as well as SMS to web (40%). The sample was randomly drawn from the Montana voter list.
For more information, please contact Kate Bridges at kbridges@aarp.org. For media inquiries, contact External Relations at media@aarp.org.