Romney raises money in Montana

HELENA — Republican Mitt Romney is raising money in Montana on Wednesday night as he becomes the first major presidential candidate to visit the state this year.

Romney will be in Hamilton for a fundraiser at the Daly Mansion. The cost to attend starts at $2,500 per person, and goes up to $25,000 or more for those dining with the former Massachusetts governor.

The event is sponsored by Charles Schwab, the brokerage house founder and a part-time Montana resident. Romney supporters say they expect Romney will carry the red-leaning state in November.

"We are just thrilled and excited to have Mitt in Montana," said Romney's state political chairman, Rep. Scott Reichner, R-Bigfork. "He is obviously trying to let us know how important Montana is."

President Barack Obama has not campaigned in the state since 2008, when he spent an unusually large amount of money in Montana and established a statewide campaign apparatus.

The Democrat visited Montana several times then but still fell short of taking the state. Sen. John McCain took 49.5 percent of the vote, compared with 47.1 percent for Obama, even though the Arizona Republican never campaigned in Montana.

A Democrat running for president has only twice carried the state since 1948. The last time a Democrat won was 1992, when Bill Clinton gained an edge after third-party candidate Ross Perot helped siphon some of the Republican vote from former President George H.W. Bush.

Romney has scheduled similar fundraising trips in neighboring states. He was in Sun Valley, Idaho, the day before the Montana visit, and plans to be in Jackson Hole, Wyo., the day after.

Planned Parenthood of Montana says it will be protesting Romney's event in Hamilton, arguing he has taken increasingly extreme positions on funding for the organization and birth control.