He returned to Montana to ….

He returned to Montana to work for his now-lieutenant governor Mike Cooney in the Secretary of State’s office. He entered private practice after losing his first campaign for attorney general in 2000. He ran again eight years later and was elected attorney general, serving from 2009 to 2013. He won back-to-back campaigns for governor and briefly made a run for the Democratic presidential nomination in 2019.

During his time on the presidential campaign trail, Bullock routinely referenced his work as governor working across the aisle with Montana Republicans, and his presidential campaign to “make Washington work more like Montana” could help him garner approval from both Democrat and Republican voters for the Senate seat.

Bullock centered his failed presidential run on the undue role of money in politics, a position that could put him at the forefront of the Senate on a critical issue.

“I would imagine Bullock would model what Tester did,” Johnson said, citing the senior senator’s support for veterans as his signature issue. “I think Bullock would cut a more moderate profile [in the Senate.]”