Grounded: A Senator's Lessons on Winning Back Rural America

An eye-opening memoir from Montana’s three-term democratic senator showing how Democrats can reconnect with rural voters

Jon Tester is the only United States senator with a full-time job outside of the Senate—as a farmer. But what really distinguishes Tester is his commitment to accountability and his success in winning red-state voters back to the Democratic Party.

In Grounded, Tester shares his early life, his rise in government, his vision for serving rural America, and his strategies for reaching heartland voters. Leaning into lessons on the value of authenticity and hard work that he learned from growing up on his family’s Montana farm, Tester has made his political career a testament to crossing the divides of class and geography.

A heartfelt and inspiring memoir from a courageous voice, Grounded shows us that if American democracy is to survive, we must put our trust in the values that keep us grounded.

Jon?Tester is a third-generation farmer and a US senator representing Montana. He and his wife Sharla operate the same farm near Big Sandy, Montana, homesteaded by Tester’s maternal grand­parents more than a century ago. Elected to the US Senate in 2006, Tester serves on the Appropriations, Commerce, Indian Affairs, and Banking committees. He is also the ranking member of the Veterans’ Affairs Committee.