HELENA, Montana--Democratic Governor Steve Bullock of Montana jumped into the 2020 presidential race on Tuesday, touting his ability to work with Republicans and promising to take on campaign finance reform on his first day in office.
Bullock, 53, won re-election in conservative Montana in 2016, making him the only candidate of the more than 20 major Democratic presidential contenders to win statewide election in a state that President Donald Trump carried in 2016. Trump won Montana by 20 percentage points.
"There’s only one person in the field that’s actually won in a state that Donald Trump won, and there’s only one that’s gotten progressive things done in governing a state that's controlled by Republicans," Bullock said in an interview with Reuters on Tuesday after announcing his bid.
Wearing jeans and cowboy boots at a campaign office so new there were no signs outside, Bullock called for an end to so-called dark money political contributions and touted the state's expansion of Medicaid. "I think we can both defeat Donald Trump and get this country working again," he said.
Bullock has barely registered in opinion polls and will face challenges fundraising against higher-profile party rivals such as former Vice President Joe Biden and Senators Bernie Sanders of Vermont, Kamala Harris of California and Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts. Bullock presents himself as a potential unifier in a party torn between those who prefer a pragmatist who can appeal to moderates and independents, and those who want a fresh face who can energize the party's increasingly diverse and left-leaning voters.
