Montana Attorney General Austin Knudsen is accusing Secretary of State Christi Jacobsen of trying to mislead voters with a new ad in the increasingly heated Republican primary for Montana’s 1st Congressional District, as the fight over President Donald Trump’s backing becomes a central issue in the race.
Jacobsen’s latest ad has drawn criticism from Flint supporters, who argue it attempts to create the impression that she has Trump’s support by using older imagery and comments from another campaign. The dispute comes as Republican candidates compete to show the strongest ties to Trump and to leading Montana Republicans in one of the state’s highest-profile 2026 contests.
The timing has only intensified the fight. Trump endorsed Aaron Flint the day after Jacobsen entered the race, giving Flint an immediate boost and making the endorsement battle a defining early flashpoint in the primary.
Knudsen issued one of the sharpest responses yet, siding firmly with Flint and accusing Jacobsen of deceiving voters.
“I’m proud to stand with President Trump and support Aaron Flint for Congress. Christi Jacobsen’s latest ad is a blatant attempt to mislead voters, using an old photo and comments from another campaign to falsely imply President Trump is backing her. It’s amateurish, desperate, and frankly disgusting,” Knudsen said.
Flint has assembled a growing list of endorsements from top Montana Republicans, including Knudsen, Gov. Greg Gianforte, Sen. Steve Daines, Sen. Tim Sheehy, Congressman Ryan Zinke, Congressman Troy Downing, Superintendent Susie Hedalen and Auditor James Brown.
The fight over the ad comes as Knudsen’s super PAC, Leadership In Action, has also released a new ad criticizing Jacobsen, opening another front in the increasingly aggressive primary contest.