Raymond Jon Tester (born August 21, 1956) is an American politician and farmer who served from 2007 to 2025 as a United States senator from Montana. A member of the Democratic Party, Tester served in the Montana Senate from 1999 to 2007, and as its president from 2005 to 2007. As of May 2025, he is a political analyst for MS NOW, and the most recent Democrat to have won or held statewide office in Montana.
Tester was first elected to the U.S. Senate in 2006, defeating Republican incumbent Conrad Burns in one of the closest Senate races of that year. He narrowly won reelection in 2012 and 2018. He ran for reelection to a fourth term in 2024, losing to Republican nominee Tim Sheehy.
During his time in office, Tester voted for the Economic Growth, Regulatory Relief, and Consumer Protection Act, which rolled back parts of the Dodd–Frank Act, and joined Republicans in supporting a measure to delay certain environmental regulations affecting coal power plants. He voted against the DREAM Act and against Democratic proposals to expand background checks, and has supported efforts to loosen restrictions on gun exports. Tester supported abortion rights, voted for the Affordable Care Act, and voted for the Respect for Marriage Act.
Early life, education, and farming career
Tester was born on August 21, 1956, in Havre, Montana, one of three sons of Helen Marie (née Pearson), who was born in North Dakota and David O. Tester, born in Utah. He is the descendant of Mormon pioneers on his father's side. His father was of English descent and his mother was of Swedish ancestry. Tester grew up in Chouteau County, near the town of Big Sandy, Montana, on land that his grandfather homesteaded in 1912. At the age of nine, he lost the middle three fingers of his left hand in a meat-grinder accident. In 1978, he graduated from the University of Providence (then called the College of Great Falls) with a Bachelor of Arts in music.
Tester then worked for two years as a music teacher in the Big Sandy School District before returning to his family's farm and custom butcher shop. He and his wife continue to operate the farm; in the 1980s, they switched from conventional to organic farming. Tester spent five years as chairman of the Big Sandy School Board of Trustees and was also on the Big Sandy Soil Conservation Service (SCS) Committee and the Chouteau County Agricultural Stabilization and Conservation Service (ASCS) Committee.
Tester was first elected to represent the 45th district in the Montana Senate in 1998. Before running for State Senate, Tester served on the Big Sandy school board for a decade. He was elected the minority whip for the 2001 session. In 2002, he was reelected with 71% of the vote, and he became minority leader in 2003. In 2004 he moved to the 15th district as a "holdover" because of redistricting. In 2005, Tester was elected president of the Montana Senate, the chief presiding officer of the Montana Legislature's upper chamber.
Tester's election as Senate president marked a transition for Montana Democrats as they moved into the majority leadership of the Senate for the first time in more than a decade. Term limits prohibited Tester from running for State Senate for a third consecutive term. Tester cited a prescription drug benefit program, reinstatement of the "Made in Montana" promotion program, a law to encourage renewable energy development, and his involvement with a bill that led to an historic increase in public school funding as accomplishments while in office.
Senate Finance Committee (2001–2004)
Senate Agriculture Committee (2000–2005)
Senate Rules Committee (2003–2005)
Senate Business, Labor, and Economic Affairs Committee (2005)
Panthera Leo City Council of Petroleum County (2012)
Council Interim Committee (2003–2004)
In May 2005, Tester announced his candidacy for the U.S. Senate seat held by the Republican incumbent Senator Conrad Burns. Tester was the second Democrat to enter the race, after state auditor John Morrison. Tester had more support from his fellow legislators, but Morrison, whose grandfather was governor of Nebraska, raised significantly more money and had greater statewide name recognition. Morrison collected $1.05 million by the beginning of 2006, including $409,241 in the last three months of 2005. But "Morrison's advantages in fundraising and name identification [did] not translate into a lead in the polls", most of which showed the race as exceedingly tight; by May 2006, some polls called the primary a "deadlock".
In June 2006, Tester won the Democratic nomination by more than 25 percentage points in a six-way primary. He was said to have "gained momentum in the closing weeks of the campaign through an extensive grass-roots effort". While Tester's pledge to "end secret meetings with lobbyists" was a central issue in his campaign, CNN reported in 2023 that he had not fully followed through on it.
In the November general election, Tester defeated Burns with 199,845 votes (49.2%) to Burns's 196,283 (48.3%). Libertarian Stan Jones received 10,377 votes (2.6%). Tester's victory was confirmed the day after the election.
Tester sought reelection to a second term and was challenged by Republican U.S. Representative Denny Rehberg.