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In Montana Governor's Race, Ex-Employee Endorses Her Ex-Bosses' Opponent

A former top executive of RightNow Technologies, the Bozeman company founded by Republican gubernatorial candidate Greg Gianforte, said her pick for governor is incumbent Democrat, Steve Bullock.

A former top executive of RightNow Technologies, the Bozeman company founded by Republican gubernatorial candidate Greg Gianforte, said her pick for governor is incumbent Democrat, Steve Bullock.

 

Over the last month, Susan Carstensen has written two letters to the editor in which she argues that her former boss is not the right person to lead the state. She worked at the company for almost 13 years as chief financial officer, chief operating officer and senior vice president.

 

“I don’t believe that his success in business translates to success in public service,” read a letter published today.

 

Although not unheard of, Carstensen admits her public opposition is unusual for the small, tight-knit business community in Montana. It also highlights the political involvement of former RightNow leaders. Republican Sen. Steve Daines, once a vice president at the company, has campaigned in support of Gianforte.

 

In an interview, Carstensen said did not intend to attack Gianforte, who she called “a great businessman.”

 

“My goal is to say he’s not the only voice of business,” Carstensen said. “We’ve always had very different points of view. It never changed our working relationship and I wouldn’t expect it to in the future.”

Caroline Cournoyer is GOVERNING's senior web editor.
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