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Fact checks: Montana's At-Large Congressional District special election, 2017

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Montana's At-Large Congressional District special election for the U.S. House of Representatives was held on May 25, 2017.

Democrats selected musician Rob Quist at the party's convention on March 5, 2017, while Republicans nominated businessman Greg Gianforte at the convention on March 6, 2017. A third candidate, Libertarian Mark Wicks, will also appear in the election. The election will replace Ryan Zinke (R) who was confirmed as secretary of the U.S. Department of the Interior on March 1, 2017.[1][2][3][4]

Ballotpedia has fact-checked the following claims involving candidates in the race for Montana's At-Large Congressional District.

Did Rob Quist advocate for a national gun registry?

May 15, 2017. In a recent debate, Greg Gianforte said of Rob Quist: “He's advocated for a national gun registry." Quist called the claim "patently false." Gianforte referred to a Bozeman Daily Chronicle interview with Quist as the source of his claim during the debate. Quist was quoted in that article as stating, in response to an apparent question about assault rifles: “So maybe there should be some legislation to register those types of things. You register your car to drive, why not register guns.” Although the article indicated that Quist was referring to registration of assault rifles, Gianforte claimed Quist advocated for a “national gun registry.”[5][6] Read more here.

Has Greg Gianforte supported a state sales tax?

November 6, 2016. During an October 24, 2016, town hall-style teleconference during his run against Steve Bullock for governor of Montana, Greg Gianforte said that Democrats had falsely suggested that he supported a statewide sales tax. “I don’t support a sales tax,” Gianforte said. “You know, never have.” As a candidate, Gianforte has openly opposed adoption of a state sales tax. In 2002, at a meeting of the Governor's Income Tax Advisory Council, Gianforte presented three solutions to make Montana more competitive, one of which was to adopt a statewide sales tax in exchange for lowering taxes on income and capital gains.[7][8] Read more here.

Did Montana spending increase $800 million under Steve Bullock?

November 1, 2016. In an October 8th debate against Steve Bullock in the 2016 race for governor of Montana, Greg Gianforte cited as a core issue that “state spending under this current governor has gone up over $800 million.” General fund spending approved under the General Appropriations Act for Montana’s biennial budget has increased by $801.5 million under Gov. Bullock. However, this does not account for total state spending, and the governor does not unilaterally control the state budget process.[9][10][11] Read more here.

Is Montana ranked 49th nationally in wages, and are millennials leaving the state seeking employment?

February 17, 2016. Just days after officially announcing his candidacy for governor of Montana, Republican businessman Greg Gianforte, speaking in Billings, Mont., stated that “Montana ranks 49th nationally in wages. And too many kids are leaving to find work elsewhere.” In 2013, Montana ranked 49th among states for annual mean wages. In addition, we find Gianforte’s claim that “too many kids are leaving to find work elsewhere,” to be supported by Montana's higher than average out-migration rates among people ages 18 to 24 over the past five years. Furthermore, according to graduate surveys conducted by two Montana universities, sizable proportions of graduates are employed or are seeking employment out of state.[12][13][14][15][16] Read more here.


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Launched in October 2015 and active through October 2018, Fact Check by Ballotpedia examined claims made by elected officials, political appointees, and political candidates at the federal, state, and local levels. We evaluated claims made by politicians of all backgrounds and affiliations, subjecting them to the same objective and neutral examination process. As of 2025, Ballotpedia staff periodically review these articles to reevaluate and reaffirm our conclusions. Please email us with questions, comments, or concerns about these articles. To learn more about our fact-checking process, click here.

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Footnotes

  1. ↑ Billings Gazette, "Democrats, Republicans plan for special election to replace Zinke," December 15, 2016
  2. ↑ KTVH, "Bullock sets soonest possible date for special election," March 1, 2017
  3. ↑ Billings Gazette, "Montana Democrats pick musician Rob Quist to run for U.S. House," March 5, 2017
  4. ↑ Billings Gazette, "Greg Gianforte wins Republican nomination for Montana's U.S. House election," March 6, 2017
  5. ↑ KRTV, “VIDEO: Gianforte, Quist, and Wicks debate in U.S. House race,” updated May 1, 2017 (5:28, 10:10, and 11:45)
  6. ↑ Bozeman Daily Chronicle, “Rob Quist touring state, lobbying Dems ahead of U.S. House election,” January 22, 2017
  7. ↑ Gianforte’s statement comes at the 1:01:57 mark of the recording. Montana Videos, “10,24.16, Gianforte Teletownhall,” October 24, 2016
  8. ↑ The Office of the Governor, “Governor's Income Tax Advisory Council,” May 30, 2002
  9. ↑ KPAX.com, "Bullock-Gianforte Debate, Part 2," accessed October 24, 2016
  10. ↑ Montana Legislative Fiscal Division, "Fiscal Report for the 2013 Biennium,” accessed October 31, 2016 (pg. 56)
  11. ↑ Montana Legislative Fiscal Division, “2017 Biennium Budget Books, Fiscal Report,” accessed October 31, 2016 (pg. 23)
  12. ↑ Greg Gianforte for Governor, "Greg Gianforte Announcement Speech," January 24, 2016
  13. ↑ Transactional Records Access Clearinghouse: IRS, “Taxpayer Returns by County,” accessed February 12, 2016
  14. ↑ The United States Census Bureau, "2014 American Community Survey 1-Year Estimates," accessed February 6, 2016
  15. ↑ Montana Tech Career Services, "Montana Tech 2012 Graduate Survey," 2012 (page 6)
  16. ↑ Montana State University, "Career Destinations," 2014 (page 14)
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