U.S. Rep. Greg Gianforte won the Republican gubernatorial primary on June 2 and is now set to face off against Democratic winner Lt. Gov. Mike Cooney in what many anticipate will be a heated race for the governor's office of Montana.
"I'm feeling thankful for the overwhelming support from every corner of the state," Gianforte said Tuesday night after the race was called, the Independent Record reported. "Both Al and Tim ran very spirited campaigns and I look forward to working with them to get a Republican elected in November."
Gianforte won the race ahead of his closest opponent, Tim Fox, by about 26 points, The Hill reported. On the Democratic side, Cooney won his primary race by about 11 points.
Gianforte and Cooney are running to replace Democratic governor Steve Bullock, who is termed out from running again this year and is instead making a run for the Senate.
In 2017, Gianforte replaced previous Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke after a special election for the congressional seat. He previously ran for governor in 2016 and lost to Bullock.
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