Midterms 2014: Montana Stays Right Of Center With Republican Steve Daines Election

Republican Steve Daines prevailed in the race for the U.S. Senate seat left open by Democrat Max Baucus. Daines was predicted to win by more than 16 points by CBS, MSU-Billings and Rasmussen. Rasmussen predicted the largest margin -- 20 points.

Democrats experienced a major setback when Lt. Gov. John Walsh -- appointed to replace Baucus -- resigned from the race after the New York Times revealed he plagiarized a paper he wrote at military school. He later admitted to the allegations. The Democratic Party had approximately two weeks to find a replacement, which they found in Amanda Curtis. “Most Montanans have never even seen a Senate candidate like Amanda Curtis,” The Washington Post explained in August 2014 after the liberal pick.

The typically right-of-center state has spoken loud and clear in their choice of Daines -- who posed a stark contrast to Curtis. While Daines is an advocate for the Keystone XL pipeline and Second Amendment Rights, Curtis -- a member of the Montana House of Representatives -- is known for her vlogging on YouTube and gun control advocacy.

Daines has also been an active critic of Obamacare, calling it “fatally flawed." He introduced bipartisan legislation "to protect Americans’ personal information while using healthcare.gov by requiring cybersecurity safeguards be put in place."

“There's a reason Democrats have trended conservative in states like Montana,” The Washington Post wrote. But the Daines campaign took pains to highlight his bipartisan record: “Steve broke from House leadership and Republicans to support the Violence Against Women Act, which provides critical support and services for victims of domestic violence and sexual assault.”

Curtis would have been only the second Montana woman elected to Congress.