The brand new Montana Democratic Party vice chair resigned Wednesday afternoon only three days after he was elected to the position by more than 100 delegates at the organization’s convention this past weekend.
Max Johansen’s resignation came after he made comments to reporters at the convention that were critical of former Democratic U.S. Sen. Jon Tester.
Johansen, the chair of the Park County Democrats, said Tester failed to adapt to the changing political landscape over the past several years, calling him part of the “old guard” that “represents a philosophy that no longer serves the interest of the party.” Johansen said Tester had not adapted over the years to face a candidate formidable challenge in the GOP’s Sen. Tim Sheehy. Sheehy ultimately beat Tester by seven points in 2024.
O’Brien sent an email to Democratic delegates and lawmakers announcing Johansen’s resignation late Wednesday morning.
Following news of his resignation, Johansen said, “I offended a lot of people that I shouldn’t have offended.”
“I don’t want there to be disunity in the party or any lack of confidence in the board, so I felt it was best to resign,” he added.
The Montana Democratic Party did not immediately respond to requests for comment, but they did confirm the resignation in a public statement from O’Brien, without acknowledging the exact reasons for the resignation.
“Mr. Johansen resigned after acknowledging that certain comments he made following the Convention were disruptive and inconsistent with the direction of the Executive Board,” O’Brien’s statement said.
Tester, who did not immediately respond to request for comment Wednesday, endorsed another candidate for chair of the party, Mike Jopek, who did not prevail. In his podcast released Tuesday, Tester criticized Johansen.
“I am not a Max Johnson [sic] Democrat,” Tester said. “I think the Democrats have a fox in the hen house, and if they don’t clean it up, there won’t be any eggs to pick.”
He went on to criticize Johansen for only recently moving to Montana, calling him a “clown” and saying that he “doesn’t know jack s—.”
“This guy’s a clown and he doesn’t know what he’s doing,” Tester added. “And it’s not because he’s been critical of me, I don’t really care about that. It’s because if you read what he says, he ain’t a Democrat. They’ve got a fox in the hen house; they need to get it fixed.”
This switch-up is yet another hiccup for the Montana Democrats in the last few years. This news comes on the heels of blistering election losses, federal wire fraud charges for a go-to campaign treasurer and internal drama within Legislative Democrats that recently broke out into public view.
Editor’s note: This is a developing news story that will be updated.
Montana State News Bureau Chief Blair Miller contributed to this report.
Victoria Eavis is a reporter for the Montana State News Bureau. She previously worked for the Casper Star-Tribune in Wyoming, covering state politics and Liz Cheney’s fall from power. She can be reached at victoria.eavis@helenair.com.
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