Voters drowning in ads from 'obscene' amounts of cash flooding Montana U.S. Senate race

BOZEMAN, Mont. (AP) — After 18 years working to topple Montana Democratic U.S. Sen. Jon Tester, Republicans in Big Sky Country see potential victory and control of the Senate majority within their grasp in an increasingly acrimonious contest that's shattering campaign spending records.

Montana voters, meanwhile, are getting worn out — deluged by negative ads on their TVs, radios, phones and in their mailboxes.

Tester won by a narrow, 3,500-vote margin in 2006 and has held on for three terms despite a dramatic political re-alignment across the U.S. Northern Plains. He's confronting what analysts say is his most serious challenge yet in Republican Tim Sheehy, a former U.S. Navy SEAL and wealthy aerospace executive aligned with former President Donald Trump.

The two sides have dueling ad campaigns with similar goals: Tear down the opponent.