Sam Forstag

Forstag says in his Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey that he was raised by a mother who worked extra nursing shifts and a father who relied on food stamps while earning a teaching certificate to become a public school teacher.[2] He graduated from the University of Montana, where he was a student senator with the Associated Students of the University of Montana (ASUM) and was elected ASUM president his senior year; he says he worked his way through school. The Flathead Beacon adds that he lobbied for Montana Associated Students as a student.[2][3][7] He worked for two years at Central House Strategies doing policy and lobbying work during the Montana Legislature, and according to his LinkedIn profile as cited by the Daily Montanan, he helped build and run the Montana Coalition to Solve Homelessness. The Flathead Beacon reports he lobbied for the ACLU of Montana in 2021.[1][3][7]

Forstag has worked for the U.S. Forest Service for several years, including as a smokejumper, a wildland firefighter who parachutes into remote areas to fight fires.[1][3] He served as vice president of National Federation of Federal Employees (NFFE) Local 60, which the Daily Montanan reports represents roughly 800 Forest Service workers on the Lolo, Bitterroot and Custer-Gallatin National Forests.[1][3][7] He had not run for political office outside the University of Montana before this campaign, and he announced his candidacy on Jan. 5, 2026.[3] He won the November 3, 2026 general election with 50.3% of the vote to Aaron Flint's 46.8% and Nick Sheedy's 2.9%, according to unofficial results reported by NBC News.[4]