Reform Party Makes Candidate Endorsements in Rhode Island, Tennessee, and Montana

The Reform Party of the United States has rolled out additional endorsements this month, backing candidates running in Rhode Island, Tennessee, and Montana. The latest announcements follow its earlier endorsement of Idaho congressional candidate Sarah Zabel.

The Reform Party National Committee began announcing a new round of endorsements over the weekend, rolling out its first on August 22 over social media. As of this article’s publication, the party has backed three additional candidates, throwing its support behind Ken Block, who is running for governor in Rhode Island, Lauren Pinkston, who is running for governor in Tennessee, and Seth Bodnar, who is seeking a U.S. Senate seat in Montana.

All three are running as independent candidates and have qualified to appear on their respective general election ballots this November.

The party also followed up on earlier remarks about plans to back a larger slate of candidates between now and Election Day. “We are in the midst of announcing one endorsement per day over the next two weeks!” the party added. “We are backing between 15 and 20 candidates this year!”

Those remarks came after the party’s endorsement earlier this month of Sarah Zabel, who is mounting an independent bid for Idaho’s 1st Congressional District. Zabel became the first congressional candidate supported by the Reform Party this cycle. Prior to that announcement, the party released an initial round of endorsements in March, backing independent U.S. Senate candidate Dan Osborn in Nebraska and then-independent Michigan gubernatorial candidate Mike Duggan, along with several candidates for local office.

Unlike with Zabel, the Reform Party joins the national Forward Party in supporting all three of its newest endorsees. Forward previously backed Pinkston in April, Block in May, and Bodnar as part of a four-candidate Senate slate in June.

Block is a businessman and government reform advocate who founded the Moderate Party of Rhode Island and previously ran for governor under its label in 2010 before seeking the Republican nomination in 2014. He is running as an independent this year and has qualified for the general election ballot alongside fellow independents Jasjit “Jay” Gotra and C.D. Reynolds. Democrats Dan McKee and Helena Foulkes and Republicans Aaron Guckian and Elaine Pelino will face off in their respective party primaries this September.

Pinkston, an educator and entrepreneur with a long history working in anti-trafficking policy, is one of 13 independent candidates set to appear in Tennessee’s gubernatorial election. She will also face Republican nominee Marsha Blackburn and Democratic nominee Jerri Green, who won their respective primaries earlier this month.

Meanwhile, Bodnar is a former Green Beret, business leader, and president of the University of Montana. A list of candidates maintained by the Montana Secretary of State shows he will face Republican Kurt Alme, Democrat Alani Bankhead, and Libertarian Kyle Austin for the state’s open U.S. Senate seat.