Gianforte set to take oath as Montana's next congressman

HELENA — Rep.-elect Greg Gianforte will take his oath of office next week in the nation’s capital, culminating a spirited and expensive 85-day campaign that included the assault of a reporter.

House Speaker Paul Ryan will preside over the ceremony set for Wednesday in the U.S. House Chamber.

“I look forward to going to work and serving the people of Montana,” Gianforte said in a statement Thursday, pledging to “protect our Montana way of life.”

The Bozeman Republican and tech entrepreneur will be joined by his wife and family for the ceremony.

Gianforte will finish out the term of Ryan Zinke, who resigned to become President Donald Trump’s Interior secretary. Gianforte has already filed to run for the seat again in 2018.

The scheduling of his oath of office came after Montana Secretary of State Corey Stapleton and a state canvassing board certified the results of the May 25 special election. Gianforte defeated Democrat Rob Quist by 6 percentage points.

The campaign was the most expensive congressional race ever in the state, drawing millions of dollars from outside groups and generating feverish fundraising by Gianforte and Quist.

Final campaign finance numbers are not yet available, but fundraising surpassed $17 million in the waning days of the campaign.

Gianforte will take the oath after he pleaded guilty Monday to a misdemeanor charge of assaulting a reporter on the eve of the election at his campaign headquarters.

A judge ordered him to pay a $385 fine and sentenced him to 40 hours of community service and 20 hours of anger management counseling.

Gianforte will arrive in Washington as the nation’s capital reels from Wednesday’s shooting that left a Republican House leader critically wounded and several others injured.