Well this has been one heck of a couple of years for the Republican Party. Never in my life time have I see anything like it — given that’s a relatively short lifetime, but who’s counting?
And now that we’re headed towards the next big election, we wanted to get a better sense of what parts of Montana would be the most likely to back Donald Trump again.
Specifically, which cities have the highest number of conservative voters in the Treasure State?
In order to do so, we turned our sites on measuring how each city in Montana with populations greater than 5,000 voted and contributed to political campaigns in the past several years. The cities with the highest percentage of voters who voted republican and gave the most to conservatives where named the most conservative cities in the state.
If you’re wondering, Missoula is the most liberal city in Montana of all those we measured.
And to be clear, we didn’t form this list based on our own biases — we relied on the cold hard data. For more on how we ran the numbers, keep on reading. Then we’ll take a closer look at each of our top 10 most conservative cities in Montana.
And if you already knew these places were conservative, check out some more reading about Montana and the most conservative places in the country:
How we determined the most conservative cities in Montana for 2019
We started by making a list of every city in Montana over 5,000 people based on the 2013-2017 American Community Survey (The most recent data). That left us with 16 cities and towns.
We then measured the voting record and donation data to determine which places lean the most rightward in their allegiances by:
- Percentage Of Registered Republicans
- # Of Contributions To Republicans Per Capita
- $ Amount Contributed To Republicans Per Capita
Next, we ranked each city from 1 to 16 for each of the criteria where number one was the most conservative.
The winner, Sidney, is “The Most Conservative City in Montana For 2019”.
Let’s go through these conservative places, shall we?
The 10 Most Conservative Places In Montana For 2019
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Sidney is a city in and the county seat of Richland County, Montana, United States, less than 10mi away from the North Dakota border. The population was 5,191 at the 2010 census. The city lies along the Yellowstone River and is in proximity to the badlands of the Dakotas. Sidney is approximately midway between Glendive, Montana and Williston, North Dakota.
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Lewistown is a city in and the county seat of Fergus County, Montana, United States. The population was 5,901 at the 2010 census. Lewistown is located in central Montana, the geographic center of the state, southeast of Great Falls. First planned in 1882, it was the site of an 1880s gold rush.
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Miles City is a city in and the county seat of Custer County, Montana, United States. The population was 8,410 at the 2010 census.
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Columbia Falls is a city in Flathead County, Montana, United States. The population was 4,710 at the 2010 census
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Kalispell is a city in, and the county seat of Flathead County, Montana, United States. The 2015 Census estimates put Kalispell’s population at 22,052. The Kalispell Micropolitan Statistical Area has a population of 93,068 and it is the largest city and commercial center of northwest Montana. The name Kalispell is a Salish word meaning “flat land above the lake”. Kalispell is also the gateway to Glacier National Park.
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Whitefish is a city in Flathead County, Montana, United States. The population was 6,357 at the 2010 census. It is home to a ski resort on Big Mountain called Whitefish Mountain Resort.
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Laurel is a city in Yellowstone County, Montana, United States. It is the third largest community in the Billings Metropolitan Statistical Area, and is located in the Yellowstone Valley, as an east-west terminal division point of the Burlington-Northern Railroad. The population was 6,781 at the 2010 census.
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Billings is the largest city in the state of Montana, and the principal city of the Billings Metropolitan Area with a population of 166,855. It has a trade area of over half a million people.
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Great Falls is a city in and the county seat of Cascade County, Montana, United States. The 2015 census estimate put the population at 59,638. The population was 58,505 at the 2010 census. It is the principal city of the Great Falls, Montana Metropolitan Statistical Area, which encompasses all of Cascade County and has a population of 82,278. Great Falls was the largest city in Montana from 1950 to 1970, when Billings surpassed it. Great Falls remained the second largest city in Montana until 2000, when it was passed by Missoula. Since then Great Falls has been the third largest city in the state.
Summing Up The Conservative Strongholds in Montana
Well there you have it, the places in Montana that have the highest number of conservatives per capita, with Sidney ranking as the least conservative in the entire state.
If you’re curious, here are the least conservative cities in Montana:
- Missoula
- Bozeman
- Belgrade
For more Montana reading, check out:
- 10 Best Places To Live In Montana
- These Are The 10 Best Counties To Live In Montana
- 10 Cheapest Places To Live In Montana
- 10 Best Places To Raise A Family In Montana
- These Are The 10 Best Places To Retire In Montana
- These Are The 10 Richest Cities In Montana
- 10 Safest Places In Montana
- 10 Worst Places To Live In Montana
Detailed List Of The Most Conservative Places In Montana
| Rank | City | % Conservative |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Sidney, MT | 80.2% |
| 2 | Glendive, MT | 75.3% |
| 3 | Lewistown, MT | 73.1% |
| 4 | Miles City, MT | 70.5% |
| 5 | Columbia Falls, MT | 63.7% |
| 6 | Kalispell, MT | 63.7% |
| 7 | Whitefish, MT | 63.7% |
| 8 | Laurel, MT | 58.1% |
| 9 | Billings, MT | 58.1% |
| 10 | Great Falls, MT | 56.8% |
| 11 | Havre, MT | 54.0% |
| 12 | Livingston, MT | 53.2% |
| 13 | Helena, MT | 47.9% |
| 14 | Belgrade, MT | 44.2% |
| 15 | Bozeman, MT | 44.2% |
| 16 | Missoula, MT | 36.6% |
