Age in the 2025 Montana State Legislature
The State of Montana held its elections for a new Montana House of Representatives and Montana State Senate on November 4th 2024. In January 2025 the currently active 2025 legislative session of the Montana State Legislature. Among the members elected 11 were aged 35 or younger on election day in 2024. Below is a map of these representatives within both chambers of the Montana State Legislature.
Montana Demographic Background in the 2024 Election
Preliminary estimates from CIRCLE at Tufts University indicate that 42% of young people aged 18–29 voted in the 2024 election, with turnout surpassing 50% in key battleground states. Nearly 50 million young citizens were eligible to vote nationwide, including over 8 million who turned 18 since the 2022 midterms.
According to the Pew Research Center, Millennials surpassed Baby Boomers in 2020 to become the largest generation in the U.S., making up 31% of the population, followed closely by Boomers at 30.9%. Generation X accounts for 28%, while the Silent Generation makes up just 9.9%. In Montana, young voters played an outsized role in shaping both state and national outcomes. According to the Youth Electoral Significance Index (YESI), Montana’s 1st Congressional District was also among the top YESI-rated contests, ranking 31st nationwide.
The Montana House of Representatives 2025 Legislative Session
Below is information covering age dynamics in the recently elected to the Montana House of Representatives
- the average age of Montana House of Representatives members is 57 years
- the youngest Representative Lukas Schubert was born in 2005
- the oldest Representative Frank J. Smith was born in 1942
- 9 Representatives are Young Elected Leaders age 35 or younger as of Election Day 2024
Generational Breakdown
Within the Montana House of Representatives, most representatives come from the Millennial, Generation X or The Baby Boomer generation. Importantly, several members of the current Montana House of Representatives belong to Generation Z. Scroll below to see the generations in the Montana House of Representatives visualized.
Partisanship in the Montana House of Representatives
The chart below further breaks down the current partisan makeup of the 2025 Montana House of Representatives. Each dot represents a single member, colored by both party affiliation and whether the legislator qualifies as a Young Elected Leader (YEL)—defined as age 35 or younger at the time of the election. This format provides a visual snapshot of generational and partisan distribution within the chamber, highlighting how younger legislators are positioned across party lines.
Partisan differences in the Montana House of Representatives extend beyond ideology to include notable generational contrasts. As shown in the visual below, Republican legislators have a higher average age than their Democratic counterparts—56.59 years compared to 55.16 years—a gap of 1.43 years. These disparities may reflect broader patterns in political recruitment, generational turnover, and the types of candidates emerging in recent election cycles.
Young Elected Representatives – Montana House of Representatives
Following the 2024 State Legislative Elections in Montana, fifteen members aged 35 or under were elected to the Montana House of Representatives. Below are all nine of these members, ordered from youngest to oldest, along with information about their local districts and party affiliation.
Young Elected Representatives — Montana House
| Photo | Name | District | Birth year (Age on Election Day) | Year first elected to Montana House |
|---|---|---|---|---|
 |
Lukas Schubert (R) | District 8 — Kalispell, MT | 2005 (Age 19) | 2024 |
 |
Braxton M. Mitchell (R) | District 5 — Plentywood, MT | 2000 (Age 24) | 2024 |
 |
Jonathan Karlen (D) | District 98 — Missoula, MT | 1999 (Age 25) | 2022 |
 |
Katie Zolnikov (R) | District 44 — Billings, MT | 1997 (Age 27) | 2020 |
 |
Morgan Thiel (R) | District 30 — Sidney, MT | 1995 (Age 29) | 2024 |
 |
Caleb L. Hinkle (R) | District 68 — Belgrade, MT | 1992 (Age 32) | 2020 |
 |
Randyn Gregg (R) | District 78 — White Sulphur Springs, MT | 1991 (Age 33) | 2024 |
 |
Jennifer Lynch (D) | District 73 — Butte, MT | 1991 (Age 33) | 2022 |
 |
Zooey Zephyr (D) | District 95 — Missoula, MT | 1989 (Age 35) | 2022 |
Photos courtesy of the Montana House of Representatives member roster.
Gender in the Montana House of Representatives
The Montana House of Representatives reflects a range of age and gender dynamics that help shape the composition of the state’s legislative body. Across all members, 64% are men, while women make up 36%. Men have a higher mean age than women with the current Montana House. For male representatives there was an average age of 56.77 at the time of the election, compared to 54.60 for their female colleagues. Of the the 9 Young Elected Leaders, 5 are male and 4 are female.
When examining both gender and party affiliation, additional differences in age emerge within the Montana House of Representatives. Republican women have the lowest average age of all four groups at 54.35, while Democratic women have a higher average age of 54.82. For men in the Montana House of Representatives, both Democrats and Republicans are on average older, with Democratic men averaging 55.44 and Republican men averaging the highest age among these groups at 57.52. These patterns show that age representation in the Montana House of Representatives varies by both gender and partisan alignment, highlighting differing pathways to political office across demographic groups.
Race and Ethnicity in the Montana House of Representatives
The racial and ethnic composition of the Montana House varies across generations. In 2024, younger cohorts show more diversity, though the chamber overall remains majority White. The table below shows each generation’s distribution.
Generations by Race/Ethnicity in the Montana House of Representatives
| Ethnicity | Generation Z 1997 – |
Millennial Generation 1981 – 1996 |
Generation X 1965 – 1980 |
Boomer Generation 1946 – 1964 |
Silent Generation – 1946 |
Full Chamber |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| White/Caucasian | 4 (100%) | 15 (88.24%) | 34 (97.14%) | 39 (90.7%) | – | 92 (92%) |
| Native American/American Indian | – | 2 (11.76%) | 1 (2.86%) | 4 (9.3%) | 1 (100%) | 8 (8%) |
| Total | 4 (4.04%) | 17 (17%) | 35 (35%) | 43 (43%) | 1 (1%) | 100 (100%) |
The full Montana House of Representatives is comprised of 100 seats.
The Montana Senate
Below is information covering age dynamics in the recently elected Montana State Senate.
- the average age of Montana State Senate members is 54.09 years
- the youngest Senators are Derek J. Harvey, and Emma Kerr-Carpenter who were both born in 1989
- the oldest Senators are John Fuller, and Bruce Gillespie who were both born in 1946
- 2 members of the Montana State Senate are Young Elected Leaders, aged 35 or younger as of Election Day 2024
Young Elected Senators in the Montana State Senate
Following the 2024 State Legislative Elections in Montana, two members aged 35 or under were elected to (and currently serve in) the Montana State Senate. Below is information about their local districts and party affiliation.
| Name | District | Birth Year (Age on Election Day) | Year First Elected to the Montana State Senate | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
 |
Derek J. Harvey (D) | 37th District –
Butte, MT |
1989 (Age 35) | 2024 |
 |
Emma Kerr-Carpenter (D) | 23rd District –
Billings, MT |
1989 (Age 35) | 2024 |
Photos courtesy of the Montana State Senate member roster.
Partisanship in the Montana State Senate
In the Montana State Senate, 33 senators belong to the Democratic Party, 32 senators are Republicans. The mean age of Democratic state senators after the 2024 election was 57.57, while the mean age of Republican state senators was 59.82. Each generation had a different partisan makeup. Below is the breakdown of party composition for each generation within the Montana State Senate.
Gender in the Montana Senate
The generational makeup of the Montana Senate reveals notable gender dynamics. Overall, men outnumber women, across Millennial, Generation X, and Baby Boomer senators. These patterns indicate that gender representation varies across generations, with women present in every age cohort but often in smaller numbers than men.
Race and Ethnicity in the Montana Senate
The racial and ethnic composition of the Montana Senate shows generational variation. The table below presents the distribution by generation.
Generations by Race/Ethnicity in the Montana State Senate
| Ethnicity | Generation Z | Millennial Generation | Generation X | Boomer Generation | Silent Generation | Full Chamber |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| White/Caucasian | – | 11 (84.63%) | 8 (100%) | 27 (93.1%) | – | 46 (92%) |
| Native American / American Indian | – | 2 (15.38%) | – | 2 (6.9%) | – | 4 (8%) |
| Total | – | 13 (26%) | 8 (16%) | 29 (58%) | – | 50 (100%) |
The full Montana State Senate is comprised of 50 seats.
Notes
The Young Elected Leaders Project applies the generational categorization of the Pew Research Center:
- Silent Generation: 1928 – 1945
- Baby Boomer Generation: 1946 – 1964
- Generation X: 1965 – 1980
- Millennial Generation: 1981 – 1996
- Generation Z: 1997 – 2012
This analysis is based on data from the most recent state legislative election in Montana which took place on November 5th 2024.
Citation Guideline
In referencing the Young Elected Leaders Project in publication please use the following language: “The Young Elected Leaders Project is housed at the Center for Youth Political Participation at The Eagleton Institute of Politics, Rutgers University – New Brunswick.”
Bibliographic Citation For this document
Author: Young Elected Leaders Project
Corresponding Authors: George D. Quinn
Year: 2024
Title: Age in the 2025 Montana Legislature