Montana’s Primary Results Expose Structural Flaw

The Montana Libertarian Party (MTLP) is disappointed by the outcome of yesterday’s U.S. Senate primary, though not at all surprised.

The MTLP endorsed Tom Jandron following our 2026 Delegate and Platform Convention in Helena this year. That endorsement came after an extensive vetting process, including meetings with both candidates, candidate questionnaires, recorded town halls with membership, written evaluations from attendees, and deliberation by delegates and party leadership. Delegates unanimously supported Tom Jandron as the candidate who best represents the libertarian principles of individual liberty, non-aggression, and constitutionally limited government.

Throughout the process, party members alternately expressed serious concerns that Kyle Austin’s views and positions conflicted with core Libertarian principles. These concerns were informed by our prior Freedom Scorecard assessment of Austin (when he ran as a Republican in 2024) and by this year’s town hall, where evaluators noted a lack of ideological grounding, weak understanding of key libertarian policy priorities such as monetary policy, entitlement spending, subsidies, and non-interventionism, and an absence of a cohesive philosophical framework. Members were also troubled by Austin’s use of AI-generated ads depicting Native Americans, service workers, and others endorsing him. Ultimately, members concluded that Austin was running as a Libertarian only to take advantage of our ballot access. 

Last night’s election results highlight a fundamental issue of freedom of association in Montana’s elections. We believe political parties are voluntary associations of individuals who share common principles, and the right to associate necessarily includes the right to define the party’s message, select its standard-bearers and representatives, and uphold its principles. Montana’s open primary system has undermined this by allowing non-members and candidates with little to no commitment to the party’s philosophy or membership to take advantage of the party’s well-earned ballot access and determine its nominees. As a result, we are put into the difficult position of relying on someone we do not know and do not support to ensure that we meet the threshold of votes required to maintain ballot access in November since this is a statewide race.

This is not an isolated incident either. In 2022, the Montana Libertarian Party was forced to publicly oppose one of its own nominees, Sam Rankin, who later admitted he was not a libertarian. In both cases, massive campaign funding from non-libertarians shifted the composition of the primary electorate and diluted the voice of committed Libertarians. These episodes demonstrate a structural and constitutional flaw: despite maintaining ballot access, Montana Libertarians too often lack meaningful control over who carries the party label and speaks on their behalf. This flaw has substantially burdened the political activity of the party, ruined the image of the party, undermined faith in the electoral process, and chilled the speech of members who would otherwise run for office as Libertarians.

At our recent convention, delegates responded to this recurring problem by adopting a platform amendment affirming Party Autonomy and Elections (Section 3.9). This amendment states that political parties have the right to determine their own membership, endorsements, and processes free from state interference and open primaries.

The Montana Libertarian Party is carefully considering all options to better protect our associational rights, strengthen the integrity of our candidate selection process, and ensure that our nominees genuinely reflect the principles and values of Montana Libertarians.

We congratulate all candidates who participated and thank those who worked to advance liberty in Montana. This outcome reinforces the need for a broader discussion about Montana’s partisan nomination system and how the Montana Libertarian Party can remain a principled vehicle for liberty while operating effectively within it.

Montana Libertarian Party Endorses Tom Jandron for U.S. Senate; Convention Highlights Structural Concerns with Open Primary System

HELENA, MT — Over the weekend, the Montana Libertarian Party (MTLP) held its 2026 Delegate and Platform Convention in Helena, bringing together candidates, delegates, and party leaders from across the state. The convention featured candidate engagement, platform amendments, and critical deliberation on the MTLP’s strategic direction heading into the 2026 election cycle.

Following extensive vetting and unanimous support from convention delegates and the executive board, the MTLP officially announces its endorsement of Tom Jandron for U.S. Senate.

A Standard-Bearer for Libertarian Principles

The MTLP is distinct from the two major parties; it is grounded in a consistent philosophy of individual liberty, non-aggression, and constitutionally limited government. As such, the MTLP expects its statewide candidates to demonstrate a clear understanding of, and commitment to, these foundational ideas.

Tom Jandron meets that standard. A disciplined advocate who became a libertarian during the Ron Paul campaigns of 2008 and 2012, Jandron has served as an MTLP Region Representative and represented Montana at the 2022 Libertarian National Convention. A veteran of the Montana National Guard, he has earned the respect of the party for his unwavering commitment to the Defend the Guard Act and his ability to articulate complex libertarian positions on foreign policy, federal spending, entitlements, and monetary policy.

The Vetting Process

In preparation for this endorsement, the MTLP conducted a structured, rigorous vetting process, including town hall-style discussions with both U.S. Senate primary candidates.

This assessment was further informed by our history with candidate Kyle Austin. In 2024, the MTLP launched a Freedom Scorecard to assess candidates across all parties. Even when running as a Republican for the U.S. House, Austin ranked poorly in his alignment with libertarian principles—a fact previously shared with him privately.

Following a recorded town hall with Austin this cycle, the MTLP gathered written evaluations from attendees. These responses revealed a troubling pattern of concerns, including:

• Lack of Ideological Grounding: Austin was unable to identify libertarian thinkers or influences, citing figures like Bill Clinton and George W. Bush as influences on his political views.

• Weak Command of Libertarian Positions: Evaluators reported that Austin struggled to answer questions appropriately regarding monetary policy, entitlement spending, and federal budgeting.

• Foreign Policy Deficiencies: Participants noted an uncertainty regarding libertarian non-interventionism and basic war-powers debates.

• Absence of a Cohesive Framework: Evaluators consistently observed that Austin’s responses lacked a unifying philosophical foundation, often appearing ad hoc or underdeveloped.

These findings were echoed across numerous independent member submissions, with attendees noting that Austin seemed “unfamiliar with basic federal policy” and failed to present a “cohesive ideological framework.”

Further, our findings were influenced by Kyle Austin’s several media appearances, his own radio show, and reports from public officials and media contacts about how he conducts himself during campaigns.

Organizational Integrity

These concerns were reinforced during the convention. Tom Jandron participated fully in all delegate selection and platform discussions, demonstrating his deep alignment with party goals. Kyle Austin, by comparison, had limited participation in the convention and failed to meaningfully engage with the party’s proceedings. During an informal straw poll of delegates, Tom Jandron received unanimous support.

The MTLP’s vigilance is a direct result of past experiences. In a previous U.S. House race, Montana’s open primary system allowed a candidate, Sam Rankin, to defeat a principled party-endorsed nominee despite Rankin’s lack of alignment with our views. That experience initiated our transition toward a more rigorous vetting process and the aggressive use of our Liberty Scorecard, which, again, is ironically how we first met Mr. Austin. It also prompted us to begin external outreach, which is how we built coalition relationships with candidates from other parties, including Matt Rosendale on ‘End the Fed’ legislation, and both Republican Tim Sheehy and Democrat Ryan Busse on the ‘Defend the Guard’ Act. 

Additional 2026 Endorsements:

• Pat McCracken, U.S. House

• Nick Sheedy, U.S. House

• Dru Koester, Montana Senate - Dru’s Website

• JC Windmueller, Montana House

Left to right: JC Windmueller, Nick Sheedy, Tom Jandron, Dru Koester, Pat McCracken

Platform Amendment: Party Autonomy and Elections

The 2026 U.S. Senate primary underscores the core issue we face: Montana’s open primary system allows candidates to co-opt the Libertarian label without demonstrating any commitment to the MTLP’s philosophy. 

In response, the MTLP adopted a critical platform amendment this weekend:

3.9 Party Autonomy and Elections 

The Montana Libertarian Party affirms that political parties are voluntary associations with the right to define their own membership and make their own endorsements.

Montana’s primary system undermines this principle by allowing non-members to participate in a party’s nomination process, diluting the voice of party members and weakening the party’s message by enabling candidates with no commitment to the party’s principles to use the party as a vehicle for ballot access. 

The MTLP opposes state interference in the internal affairs of political organizations and supports the right of parties to determine their own endorsement processes, including limiting participation to members and selecting their own standard-bearers.

We also recognize that a very few political parties are granted an unelected role in the electoral process, which disenfranchises those whose views are not aligned with one of these privileged parties. Our goal as Libertarians is to remove barriers to political participation rather than reinforce them. 

We call for a more open process for qualifying candidates for the ballot. This benefits both political parties (by empowering them to control their own messaging), voters (by giving them choices in alignment with their own values, rather than those of political parties), and candidates (who will be empowered to express their own views independent of party dogma).

Looking Ahead

The Montana Libertarian Party enters the 2026 election cycle with a renewed commitment to principle, clarity, and organizational integrity. We believe that we are a party of principle, willing to work with anyone—across all party lines—who is willing to advance the cause of liberty.

With Tom Jandron as our endorsed candidate for U.S. Senate, and a slate of other endorsed candidates for local and state office, the MTLP is confident that we are advancing the individuals who can best represent the principled, consistent alternative that Montana voters deserve.