John Driscoll (Montana)

John B. Driscoll (Democratic Party) ran for election to the U.S. House to represent Montana's 2nd Congressional District. He lost in the general election on November 5, 2024.

Biography

Driscoll was born in Los Angeles, California. He served in the United States Army from September 1966 through May 2002. Driscoll earned a bachelor's degree from Gonzaga University in May 1968. Driscoll also attended Columbia University School of International Affairs and Institute of Latin American Studies (graduated June 1970), Harvard University Kennedy School of Government (graduated June 1980), University of Montana Graduate School of Business (graduated 1985), and the U.S. Army War College (graduated June 1996). His professional experience includes working as a wildland firefighter, including smoke jumping, as a public utility regulator, and as a writer. Driscoll has been a member of Investigative Reporters and Editors.^[1]

Elections

2024

Montana's 2nd Congressional District election, 2024 (June 4 Democratic primary)

Montana's 2nd Congressional District election, 2024 (June 4 Republican primary)

General election

General election for U.S. House Montana District 2

Troy Downing defeated John B. Driscoll, Reilly Neill, and John Metzger in the general election for U.S. House Montana District 2 on November 5, 2024.

	Candidate	%	Votes
✔	Troy Downing (R)	65.7	181,832
	John B. Driscoll (D)	33.9	93,713
	Reilly Neill (D) (Write-in)	0.4	1,058
	John Metzger (Independent) (Write-in)	0.0	40
	Other/Write-in votes	0.0	9

	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 276,652
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Democratic primary election

Democratic primary for U.S. House Montana District 2

John B. Driscoll defeated Steve Held, Ming Cabrera, and Kevin Hamm in the Democratic primary for U.S. House Montana District 2 on June 4, 2024.

	Candidate	%	Votes
✔	John B. Driscoll	33.3	13,420
	Steve Held	26.4	10,649
	Ming Cabrera	20.9	8,408
	Kevin Hamm	19.4	7,813

	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 40,290
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Republican primary election

Republican primary for U.S. House Montana District 2

The following candidates ran in the Republican primary for U.S. House Montana District 2 on June 4, 2024.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Troy Downing	36.1	36,269
		Denny Rehberg	17.1	17,182
		Stacy Zinn	13.5	13,581
		Elsie Arntzen	9.4	9,468
		Kenneth Bogner	9.0	9,026
		Ric Holden	7.1	7,108
		Joel G. Krautter	3.4	3,432
	Submit photo	Kyle Austin	3.2	3,177
		Edward Walker	1.2	1,168

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 100,411
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Withdrawn or disqualified candidates

Matt Rosendale (R)

Endorsements

Ballotpedia did not identify endorsements for Driscoll in this election.

2020

United States Senate election in Montana, 2020 (June 2 Democratic primary)

United States Senate election in Montana, 2020 (June 2 Republican primary)

General election

General election for U.S. Senate Montana

Incumbent Steve Daines defeated Steve Bullock in the general election for U.S. Senate Montana on November 3, 2020.

	Candidate	%	Votes
✔	Steve Daines (R)	55.0	333,174
	Steve Bullock (D)	45.0	272,463

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 605,637
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Withdrawn or disqualified candidates

Wendie Fredrickson (G)

Democratic primary election

Democratic primary for U.S. Senate Montana

Steve Bullock defeated John Mues and Mike Knoles (Unofficially withdrew) in the Democratic primary for U.S. Senate Montana on June 2, 2020.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Steve Bullock	95.5	144,949
	Submit photo	John Mues	2.5	3,740
		Mike Knoles (Unofficially withdrew)	2.1	3,165

	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 151,854
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Withdrawn or disqualified candidates

Republican primary election

Republican primary for U.S. Senate Montana

Incumbent Steve Daines defeated John B. Driscoll and Daniel Larson in the Republican primary for U.S. Senate Montana on June 2, 2020.

	Candidate	%	Votes
✔	Steve Daines	88.0	192,942
	John B. Driscoll	6.4	13,944
	Daniel Larson	5.6	12,319

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 219,205
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Watch the Candidate Conversation for this race!

Green primary election

Green primary for U.S. Senate Montana

Wendie Fredrickson defeated Dennis Daneke in the Green primary for U.S. Senate Montana on June 2, 2020.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Wendie Fredrickson	66.4	504
	Submit photo	Dennis Daneke	33.6	255

	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 759
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.
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Libertarian primary election

Withdrawn or disqualified candidates

Susan Good-Geise (L)

2014

See also: United States House of Representatives elections in Montana, 2014

Driscoll ran in the 2014 election for the U.S. House to represent Montana's At-Large District. Driscoll sought the Democratic nomination in the primary on June 3, 2014, but lost to John Lewis.

**U.S. House, Montana's At-Large District Democratic Primary, 2014**
Candidate	Vote %	Votes
John Lewis	59.8%	42,588
John Driscoll	40.2%	28,580
Total Votes		71,168
Source: Montana Secretary of State - Official Primary Results

Campaign themes

2024

Ballotpedia survey responses

John B. Driscoll did not complete Ballotpedia's 2024 Candidate Connection survey.

2020

John B. Driscoll completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2020. The survey questions appear in bold and are followed by Driscoll's responses. Candidates are asked three required questions for this survey, but they may answer additional optional questions as well.

Expand all | Collapse all

Who are you? Tell us about yourself.

I've been fortunate to earn a solid preparation for work in our government and have experience as a Legislator, Legislative Majority Leader and House Speaker. For 12 years as an elected Montana Public Service Commissioner I learned how to work with a staff of qualified professionals, helping me to understand and regulate the trucking, rail, water, telecommunications, natural gas and electricity industries. I have extensive active and national guard military experience in infantry, intelligence, armor and planning positions, culminating on the staff of the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs if Staff. In the months after the attack on 9/11, as an Army Guard Colonel, I served as Deputy Team Chief in the National Military Command Center on one of the Crisis Action Teams first executing Operations Enduring Freedom and Noble Eagle. As a member for seven year of the Advisory Council to the Electric Power Research Institute I had special opportunities to gain insight into the challenges posed by global climate realities.

Please list below 3 key messages of your campaign. What are the main points you want voters to remember about your goals for your time in office?

Within 3 months of being sworn, I will complete a preliminary investigation of facts surrounding cancellations of U.S. POW-MIA Recovery Operations.
I expect to check and balance our President, regardless of his or her political party.
We already have the courage necessary to adapt to our changing earth.

What areas of public policy are you personally passionate about?

Protecting and defending our U.S. Constitution against all enemies foreign and domestic; healing our country by protecting our constitution, practicing mutual respect with U.S.Senate colleagues and setting a definite line against Graft; adapting our country to post-Covid-19 realities.

Who do you look up to? Whose example would you like to follow, and why?

Republican Congressman Abraham Lincoln because he said our government is "of the people, by the people and for the people," he held our nation together in a time of crisis like now, and he established the high water mark in our nation's relationship to China with the treaty negotiated by his Ambassador, Anson Burlingame.

Is there a book, essay, film, or something else you would recommend to someone who wants to understand your political philosophy?

My three books:

The Storm of a Lifetime, A Report to U.S.Catholic Bishops and Pope Francis; "The Guns They Hear Me;" and Gonzo Road Show Diary.

What characteristics or principles are most important for an elected official?

Honesty and respect for the individual lives being led by constituents.

What qualities do you possess that you believe would make you a successful officeholder?

Listening and reading.

What do you believe are the core responsibilities for someone elected to this office?

Quietly becoming well-informed ahead of deciding on a key issue, then listening to all points of view ahead of the decision.

What legacy would you like to leave?

I would like to help leave a fine And peaceful country, with leaders working together adapting it to our earth, for my grandchildren.

What is your favorite book? Why?

Memento for Istanbul by Umit, because I've been to Istanbul, which has to be the most exciting city on the world and The Who Dunnit was a wonderful way to teach the thousands of years of history to the place.

If you could be any fictional character, who would you want to be?

Gabriel Dupris

What was the last song that got stuck in your head?

"We all live in a yellow submarine" by the Beatles.

What is something that has been a struggle in your life?

Avoiding bankruptcy after divorce.

What do you perceive to be the United States’ greatest challenges as a nation over the next decade?

Raising the massive level of fiscal resources necessary to repay pandemic-related emergency outlays, and modify American industry and infrastructure to reflect climate realities.

What qualities does the U.S. Senate possess that makes it unique as an institution?

Each Senator can be a state, national and international role model.

Do you believe that it’s beneficial for senators to have previous experience in government or politics?

Yes

What do you think of the filibuster?

Don't like it.

What criteria would you apply when deciding whether to confirm presidential appointees?

Are they properly prepared by education and experience, maintain good situational awareness and do they exercise good independent judgement?

Do you believe it’s beneficial to build relationships with other senators?

It is essential.

If you are not a current senator, are there certain committees that you would want to be a part of?

No, but I do hope to visit Individually, as soon as possible, with each of my colleagues from both political parties.

If you are not currently a member of your party’s leadership in the U.S. Senate, would you be interested in joining the leadership? If so, in what role?

No

Is there a particular senator, past or present, whom you want to model yourself after?

I think Mike Mansfield quietly accomplished a great deal by showing respect for his Senate colleagues.

Note: Ballotpedia reserves the right to edit Candidate Connection survey responses. Any edits made by Ballotpedia will be clearly marked with [brackets] for the public. If the candidate disagrees with an edit, he or she may request the full removal of the survey response from Ballotpedia.org. Ballotpedia does not edit or correct typographical errors unless the candidate's campaign requests it.

Campaign finance summary

Note: The finance data shown here comes from the disclosures required of candidates and parties. Depending on the election or state, this may represent only a portion of all the funds spent on their behalf. Satellite spending groups may or may not have expended funds related to the candidate or politician on whose page you are reading this disclaimer. Campaign finance data from elections may be incomplete. For elections to federal offices, complete data can be found at the FEC website. Click here for more on federal campaign finance law and here for more on state campaign finance law.

John B. Driscoll campaign contribution history
Year	Office	Status	Contributions	Expenditures
2024*	U.S. House Montana District 2	Lost general	$0	N/A**
2020	U.S. Senate Montana	Lost primary	$0	N/A**
Grand total			$0	N/A**
Sources: OpenSecrets, Federal Elections Commission *This product uses the openFEC API but is not endorsed or certified by the Federal Election Commission (FEC).
* Data from this year may not be complete
** Data on expenditures is not available for this election cycle
Note: Totals above reflect only available data.

External links

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Personal

Footnotes

↑ Information submitted to Ballotpedia through the Candidate Connection survey on May 16, 2020

[show]

Montana's current delegation to the United States Congress

Senators

Steve Daines (R)

Tim Sheehy (R)

Representatives

District 1

Ryan Zinke (R)

District 2

Troy Downing (R)

Republican Party (4)

[bio-1] Information submitted to Ballotpedia through the Candidate Connection survey on May 16, 2020

[1]

	v • e State of Montana Helena (capital)
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John Driscoll (Montana)

Biography

Elections

2024

General election

General election for U.S. House Montana District 2

Democratic primary election

Democratic primary for U.S. House Montana District 2

Republican primary election

Republican primary for U.S. House Montana District 2

Withdrawn or disqualified candidates

Endorsements

2020

General election

General election for U.S. Senate Montana

Withdrawn or disqualified candidates

Democratic primary election

Democratic primary for U.S. Senate Montana

Withdrawn or disqualified candidates

Republican primary election

Republican primary for U.S. Senate Montana

Green primary election

Green primary for U.S. Senate Montana

Libertarian primary election

Withdrawn or disqualified candidates

2014

Campaign themes

2024

Ballotpedia survey responses

2020

Campaign finance summary

See also

External links

Footnotes

Information about voting

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