The 2000 Montana gubernatorial election took place on November 7, 2000. Incumbent
Governor of MontanaMarc Racicot, who was first elected in
1992 and was re-elected in
1996, was unable to seek re-election due to term limits.
Judy Martz, the
Lieutenant Governor of Montana under Racicot for four years, won the
Republican primary and advanced to the general election, where she faced
Mark O'Keefe, the Montana State Auditor and
Democratic nominee. Despite the fact that
George W. Bush, the
Republican nominee for president in
2000, won the state in a
landslide, the race between Martz and O'Keefe was close. However, Martz managed to narrowly defeat him to win her first and only term as governor. This was the last time that a Republican was elected Governor of Montana until
2020, when
Greg Gianforte was elected.[2]