Montana deserves better than another man who looked away | Emily Marburger

Bodnar wants voters to see him as a fresh, independent-minded leader but his record at the University of Montana tells a very different story. Under his leadership, UM faced a federal Title IX lawsuit alleging systemic sex-based discrimination against women employees. The women who brought the case did not describe a minor workplace dispute. They alleged a “good ol’ boys club” culture where women were pushed aside, passed over and punished for daring to challenge men.

The lawsuit alleged that women who questioned decisions were marginalized or forced out. It alleged that qualified women were denied opportunities while men were favored. It alleged that women endured comments about their appearance, age, weight, tone, and demeanor, including comments attributed to Bodnar himself.

UM denied wrongdoing, and the case ultimately settled without an admission of liability. But legal fine print does not erase the basic question Montana voters deserve to ask: is this the record of someone we should send to the United States Senate?

At a moment when the country is demanding transparency from powerful institutions, Bodnar is asking Montanans to hand him even more power. He is asking for a promotion from university president to U.S. senator while serious allegations from women who worked under his administration remain part of his public record.

That matters.

The Senate is not a training ground. It is not a place for leaders who say the right things about respect and accountability while women under their leadership say they experienced the opposite. Congress is where decisions are made about workplace protections, civil rights enforcement, education, healthcare, reproductive freedom, and whether survivors are believed when they come forward.

Montana does not need another politician who treats women’s experiences as a public relations problem. We need leaders who understand that accountability starts before the lawsuit, before the settlement, before the headline, and before the powerful men in the room decide there is finally enough pressure to act.

Montanans know better. We believe in fairness. We believe in looking people in the eye. We believe that leadership means taking responsibility, not hiding behind carefully polished talking points.

Seth Bodnar’s record raises serious questions about whether he meets that standard. When women at UM alleged they were treated as less capable, less credible, and less worthy of advancement, the man at the top was Bodnar. That is not a side issue. That is a leadership issue.

And for a U.S. Senate seat, leadership is the whole job.

Montana deserves a senator who will stand up for women, workers, students, survivors, and anyone brave enough to challenge power. Based on the record, Seth Bodnar is not that leader.