Nine Republican Montana state senators voted with 18 Democrats to form a new majority to pass major legislation last session, undermining the influence of the ultra-conservative caucus of the state’s GOP. Dubbed “The Nasty Nine,” the Republican senators were censured by their own party, stripped of their GOP status and cut off from voting rights at their party’s conventions in June. Some of those senators — and two of the Democrats they voted with — spoke with Jo Ling Kent about what they accomp

The nine Republican Montana state senators who voted with Democrats to form a working majority during the 2025 legislative session are: Jason Ellsworth (Hamilton) Bruce Gillespie (Ethridge, also referred to as Butch Gillespie) Gregg Hunter (Glasgow) Josh Kassmier (Fort Benton) Gayle Lammers (Hardin) Denley Loge (St. Regis) Wendy McKamey (Great Falls) Russel Tempel (Chester) Shelley Vance (Belgrade) These senators, sometimes referred to as the “Nasty Nine” or “Noble Nine” by various parties, alig