In 2016, Steve Bullock won re-election as a Democrat in Montana, which is a state Donald Trump carried by 20 points.
He told the crowd who turned out to hear him in Manchester, at the Politics and Eggs speaking series, not to discount the need to appeal to voters who don't live on the coasts, people who live in places like Michigan, Wisconsin and Pennsylvania.
"I refuse to cede the votes of rural voters -- as if folks who work the land and feed world, who pass a plate on a Sunday are somehow forever going to be wedded to this guy from New York with orange hair and a gold toilet. We need to make that connection to them."
Bullock confirmed to reporters that he is seeking public financing for his campaign.
He'd be the first Democrat to do so. Public financing gives candidates up to a $250 match per donation but forces them to abide an estimated $60 million overall spending cap. Bullock cast the move as a matter of principle, but he's also raised less money than many other Democrats in the race.
