Zinke celebrates reelection to U.S. House

Cheers broke out at a Whitefish Republican victory party just before midnight on Election Day as polls showed U.S. Rep. Ryan Zinke defeated Democrat Denise Juneau to maintain a two-decade Republican lock on Montana’s sole House seat. 

Zinke secured his second term in Congress with more than 60 percent of the vote, according to early results from the Flathead County Election Department. Libertarian Rick Breckenridge was trailing far behind Zinke and Juneau in early returns.

When polls closed in Montana at 8 p.m., a crowd of Zinke supporters cheered from his victory party at The Lodge at Whitefish Lake as Fox News called the state a win for Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump.

About three hours later, the crowd boomed as early projections pushed Trump past 274 electoral votes, exceeding the requirement to claim the White House.

“F#@*@*# Batman’s in control,” one celebrator yelled as the crowd began to cheer.

Some chanted “It’s time for Trump,” as others pointed to Zinke, who remained ahead in the polls throughout the night.

“OK, OK — we won,” Zinke said in his first line of his victory speech a few minutes past midnight.

Zinke, a former U.S. Navy SEAL commander from Whitefish entered the race widely considered the favorite and was leading in early returns by about 15 percentage points.

Zinke said he hoped the country could begin to move forward after such a turbulent national race.

“Yes, we’re feeling good here tonight,” Zinke said before final results were in. “But at the end of the race, America has got to act as Americans. This election has been so divisive, that’s not a Republican or Democrat issue we face, it’s an American issue.”

Zinke has been a consistent supporter of Trump throughout the nominee’s campaign, even as he received flack from some members within his own party.

“Many of the statement’s from Trump throughout (his campaign), you couldn’t defend,” Zinke said. “But it didn’t make Hillary a better candidate. A lot of Americans were voting against a candidate rather than for a candidate, and this is from coffee shops to coffee tables across Montana.”

Zinke said while he has stated an interest in serving in Trump Administration, he’s not sure his time in Montana is complete yet. He said he did not yet have a position in mind within a Trump Administration.

Democrats tried to use Zinke’s aspirations against him, with a Washington, D.C.-based political committee sinking almost $500,000 into anti-Zinke advertisements that derided his ambitions for more influential office.

The race has been the most expensive House campaign in the state’s recent history with more than $8.5 million poured into the contest, much of it from out-of-state political committees and donors.

Juneau drew national attention as she aspired to become the first American Indian woman elected to Congress.

Juneau, who served eight years as the state’s superintendent of public instruction, is a member of the Mandan Hidatsa tribes who grew up in Browning on the Blackfeet Indian Reservation. As Montana’s first openly gay federal candidate, she gained recognition among progressives across the United States.

Zinke said that throughout his first term in congress, he watched tension grow between the Obama Administration and Congress. He said he hopes to see that tension transition into a productive relationship with a new president in office.

“We need to make sure Republicans don’t do what Democrats had done in the past … we need to make sure we look across the table and really listen,” Zinke said.

Zinke spent 23 years with the SEALs, rising through the ranks to become a commander. He served in Iraq, Kosovo and Bosnia-Herzegovina.

When he retired in 2008, the 55-year-old turned to politics with a four-year term as state senator from Whitefish. He made an unsuccessful bid for lieutenant governor before winning Montana’s only House seat two years ago.

A half hour before 1 a.m., Zinke and Trump celebrators filtered out of The Lodge. Some wore Zinke shirts as others waved signs sporting the two candidates.

Zinke said the local and national polls gave life to what he had heard while campaigning across Montana.

“I think it’s a reflection of a wave in America that looks at the direction our country is heading,” he said. “Moving forward, I want to see America work to unite, and fast.”