Jon Tester
| Jon Tester | ||
 | ||
| U.S. Senate, Montana | ||
| Incumbent | ||
| In office | ||
| January 3, 2007-Present | ||
| Term ends | ||
| January 3, 2019 | ||
| Years in position | 6 | |
| Party | Democratic | |
| Predecessor | Conrad Burns (R) | |
| Compensation | ||
| Base salary | $174,000/year | |
| Elections and appointments | ||
| Last election | November 6, 2012 | |
| Next election | November 2018 | |
| Campaign $ | $13,395,778 | |
| Term limits | N/A | |
| Prior offices | ||
| Montana State Senate | ||
| 1998-2007 | ||
| Education | ||
| Bachelor's | University of Great Falls | |
| Personal | ||
| Birthday | August 21, 1956 | |
| Place of birth | Havre, Montana | |
| Profession | Organic Farmer | |
| Net worth | $1,141,002 | |
| Religion | Church of God (Anderson) | |
| Websites | ||
| Office website | ||
| Campaign website | ||
Contents |
Based on an analysis of bill sponsorship by GovTrack, Tester is a "centrist Democrat".[1]
Tester ran unopposed in the Democratic primary in 2012 and faced Denny Rehberg, who had defeated Dennis Teske in the Republican primary on June 5, 2012.[2] Tester won re-election on November 6, 2012.[3]
Biography
Tester was born in Havre, Montana, near the town of Big Sandy, Montana, on the land that his grandfather homesteaded in 1916.[4] In 1978, he graduated from the University of Great Falls with a B.S. in music. He then worked for two years as a music teacher in the Big Sandy School District before returning to his family's farm and custom butcher shop.
Career
He then worked for two years as a music teacher in the Big Sandy School District before returning to his family's farm and custom butcher shop.[5] Tester served five years as chairman of the Big Sandy School Board of Trustees and served on the Big Sandy Soil Conservation Service (SCS) Committee and the Chouteau County Agricultural Stabilization and Conservation Service (ASCS) Committee.
Committee assignments
U.S. Senate
2013-2014
Tester serves on the following Senate committees[6]:
- Committee on Appropriations
- Subcommittee on Military Construction and Veterans Affairs, and Related Agencies
- Subcommittee on Departments of Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education, and Related Agencies
- Subcommittee on Department of the Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies
- Subcommittee on Department of Homeland
- Subcommittee on Energy and Water Development
- Subcommittee on Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies
- Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs
- Subcommittee on Securities, Insurance and Investment
- Subcommittee on Financial Institutions and Consumer Protection Members
- Subcommittee on Economic Policy
- Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs
- Subcommittee on Emergency Management, Intergovernmental Relations, and the District of Columbia
- Subcommittee on the Efficiency and Effectiveness of Federal Programs and the Federal Workforce
- Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations
- Committee on Indian Affairs
- Committee on Veterans' Affairs
2011-2012
- Committee on Appropriations
- Subcommittee on Energy and Water Development
- Subcommittee on Financial Services and General Government
- Subcommittee on Homeland Security
- Subcommittee on Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies
- Subcommittee on Legislative Branch
- Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs
- Subcommittee on Economic Policy
- Subcommittee on Housing, Transportation, and Community Development
- Subcommittee on Financial Institutions
- Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs
- Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations
- Ad Hoc Subcommittee on State, Local, and Private Sector Preparedness and Integration
- Ad Hoc Subcommittee on Contracting Oversight
Fiscal Cliff
Tester voted for the fiscal cliff compromise bill, which made permanent most of the Bush tax cuts originally passed in 2001 and 2003 while also raising tax rates on the highest income levels. The bill was passed in the Senate by a 89/8 vote on January 1, 2013.[7]
Elections
2012
Tester ran for re-election in 2012. He ran unopposed in the Democratic primary. Denny Rehberg defeated Dennis Teske in the Republican primary on June 5, 2012.[2]
The University of Virginia's Center for Politics published an article called Sabato's Crystal Ball on March 22, 2012 detailing the 8 races in the Senate in 2012 that will decide the political fate of which party will end up with control in 2013.[8] The seat rated a a toss-up that the Sabato's Crystal Ball believes is most likely to change hands is the Senate seat in Montana.[8] The article notes that incumbent Tester is a slight underdog against challenger Denny Rehberg.[8]
On May 4, 2012, [1] reported that the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee had purchased nearly $3 million in Montana broadcast time from late August through the November general election to help re-elect Tester. According to Politico, "the DSCC's early commitment to fall spending in the race indicates a level of confidence in the Democrat against a less-examined challenger. Given the map of seats the Democrats need to win to maintain the majority, the DSCC clearly thinks Tester is a wise investment." [9]
According to the website Daily Kos, this race was one of nine top-ballot 2012 races that contained Libertarian candidates who received more total votes than was the difference between the Democratic winner and the GOP runner-up. In this case, Dan Cox took in over 12,500 more votes than the number that separated Tester and Rehberg.[10]
| U.S. Senate, Montana, General Election, 2012 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
| Democratic |  Jon Tester Incumbent |
48.6% | 236,123 | |
| Republican | Denny Rehberg | 44.9% | 218,051 | |
| Libertarian | Dan Cox | 6.6% | 31,892 | |
| Total Votes | 486,066 | |||
| Source: Montana Secretary of State "2012 Election Center" | ||||
2006
On November 9, 2006, Tester was elected to the United States Senate. He defeated the incumbent Conrad Burns (R) and Stan Jones (Libertarian). [11]
| United States Senate, Montana General Election, 2006 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
| Democratic | Jon Tester |
49.2% | 199,845 | |
| Republican | Conrad Burns | 48.3% | 196,283 | |
| Libertarian | Stan Jones | 2.6% | 10,377 | |
| Total Votes | 406,505 | |||
Campaign donors
Comprehensive donor information for is available dating back to 2000. Based on available campaign finance records, raised a total of $13,395,778 during that time period. This information was last updated on April 24, 2013.[12]
| Jon Tester's Campaign Contribution History | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Office | Result | Contributions | |
| 2012 | U.S. Senate (Montana) |  |
$13,395,778 | |
| Grand Total Raised | $13,395,778 | |||
2012
Tester won election to the U.S. Senate election in 2012. During that election cycle, Tester's campaign committee raised a total of $13,376,360 and spent $13,328,572.[13]
| United States Senate, 2012 - Jon Tester Campaign Contributions | |
|---|---|
| Total Raised | $13,376,360 |
| Total Spent | $13,328,572 |
| Total Raised by Election Runner-up | $9,560,983 |
| Total Spent by Election Runner-up | $9,526,$1,377,131859 |
| Top contributors to Jon Tester's campaign committee | |
| League of Conservation Voters | $144,261 |
| Blackstone Group | $61,000 |
| JPMorgan Chase & Co | $52,000 |
| Visa Inc | $47,400 |
| Thornton & Naumes | $46,600 |
| Top 5 industries that contributed to campaign committee | |
| Lawyers/Law Firms | $1,377,131 |
| Retired | $840,839 |
| Securities & Investment | $631,166 |
| Lobbyists | $572,231 |
| Leadership PACs | $423,750 |
Out-of-state donations
According to an Open Secrets report, Tester ranked among the top ten senate candidates receiving out-of-state donations during the 2012 election cycle. He received $6,057,952, or 77.6%, of his donations from outside of Montana. [14]
Analysis
Lifetime voting record
According to the website GovTrack, Tester missed 15 of 1,935 roll call votes from Jan 2007 to Apr 2013, which is 0.8% of votes during that period. This is better than the median of 1.7% among the lifetime records of senators currently serving.[15]
Congressional staff salaries
The website Legistorm compiles staff salary information for members of Congress. Tester paid his congressional staff a total of $2,492,099 in 2011. He ranked 12th on the list of the lowest paid Democratic Senatorial Staff Salaries and he ranked 41st overall of the lowest paid Senatorial Staff Salaries in 2011. Overall, Montana ranked 28th in average salary for senatorial staff. The average U.S. Senate congressional staff was paid $2,529,141.70 in fiscal year 2011.[16]
Net worth
2011
Based on congressional financial disclosure forms and calculations made available by OpenSecrets.org - The Center for Responsive Politics, Tester's net worth as of 2011 was estimated between $752,004 and $1,530,000. That averages to $1,141,002, which is lower than the average net worth of Democratic Senators in 2011 of $20,795,450. His average net did not change from 2010.[17]
2010
Based on congressional financial disclosure forms and calculations made available by OpenSecrets.org - The Center for Responsive Politics, Tester's net worth as of 2010 was estimated between $752,004 and $1,530,000. That averages to $1,141,002, which is lower than the average net worth of Democratic Senators in 2010 of $19,383,524.[18]
National Journal vote ratings
- See also: National Journal vote ratings
Each year, National Journal publishes an analysis of how liberally or conservatively each member of Congress voted, as compared to other members, in the previous year. More information about the analysis process can be found on the vote ratings page.
2012
According to the data released in 2013, Tester was ranked the 41th most liberal senator during 2012.[19]
2011
According to the data released in 2012, Jon Tester was ranked the 41st most liberal senator during 2011.[20]
Percentage voting with party
November 2011
The website Open Congress tracks how often members of Congress vote with the majority of the chamber caucus. According to the website, Jon Tester voted with the Democratic Party 86.1% of the time, which ranked 48th among the 51 Senate Democratic members in November 2011.[21]
Recent news
This section displays the most recent stories in a Google news search for the term Jon + Tester + Montana + Senate
- All stories may not be relevant to this page due to the nature of the search engine.
Jon Tester News Feed
- Schweitzer Elected Stillwater Chairman, Mum on Senate Run - National Journal (blog)
- Baucus, Powerful Montana Democrat, Will Leave Senate - New York Times
- Ex-rep Rehberg doesn't rule out Montana Senate bid - USA Today - USA TODAY
- Montana WWII veterans touch down in D.C. - KTVQ Billings News
- OurReadersSpeak - The Montana Standard - Montana Standard
- Lawmakers seek to offer vets farming opportunities - Great Falls Tribune
- VOTE CHART: How Montana's congressional lawmakers voted on major issues - The Missoulian
- Senators oppose sales tax bill: 'Fairness Act' voted on today - Great Falls Tribune
- Washington Bureau Chief - Press Herald
- Defending SD water rights - Black Hills Pioneer
Cite error: <ref> tags exist, but no <references/> tag was found
Personal
Tester is married to Sharla Tester, with whom he has two children, Christine and Shon.[4]
External links
- Social media:
- Biographies:
- Political profiles:
- Fact-checking:
- Financial:
- Interest group ratings:
- Issue positions:
- Legislation:
- Public statements:
- Voting record:
- Works by or about:
- Media appearances:
- Media coverage:
References
- ↑ Gov Track "Jon Tester," Accessed March 3, 2012
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 Montana Secretary of State "Election Results" Accessed June 5, 2012
- ↑ Politico "2012 Election Map, Montana"
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 "Jon Tester: The Right Man to Represent Montana". testerforsenate.com.. Retrieved 2011-10-22.
- ↑ "Jon Tester (D-Mont.)" WhoRunsGov.com Retrieved 2011-10-22.
- ↑ Congressional Quarterly "Senate Committee List" Accessed January 22, 2013
- ↑ U.S. Senate "Roll Call Vote on the Fiscal Cliff" Accessed January 4, 2013.
- ↑ 8.0 8.1 8.2 Center for Politics "Tilting the Toss Ups – the Eight Races That Will Decide the Senate" Accessed April 9, 2012
- ↑ Politico "DSCC buys nearly $3 million in fall time for Tester race" May 7, 2012
- ↑ Daily Kos, "Libertarians provided the margin for Democrats and at least nine elections," November 15, 2012
- ↑ U.S. Congress House Clerk "Statistics of the Congressional Election of November 7, 2006"
- ↑ Open Secrets "Donor history for Jon Tester" April 2013
- ↑ Open Secrets " 2012 Election Cycle," Accessed March 2013
- ↑ Open Secrets, "More than 60 Lawmakers Relied Mostly on Out-of-State Money", May 7, 2013
- ↑ GovTrack, "Jon Tester" Accessed April 2013
- ↑ LegiStorm "Jon Tester"
- ↑ OpenSecrets.org, "Jon Tester (D-Mont), 2011"
- ↑ OpenSecrets.org, "Tester, (D-Montana), 2010"
- ↑ National Journal, "TABLE: House Liberal Scores by Issue Area," February 26, 2013
- ↑ National Journal, "Searchable Vote Ratings Tables: House," February 23, 2012
- ↑ Open Congress "Voting With Party"
| Political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Conrad Burns |
United States Senate - Montana 2007–Present |
Succeeded by - |
| Preceded by ' |
Montana Senate 1998–2007 |
Succeeded by Jim Shockley |
| |||||||||||||
