It's election day in Montana and a special congressional race for its only seat in the House of Representatives is dominating headlines for suprising reasons.

A tight contest between former Republican gubernatorial candidate Greg Gianforte and Democratic candidate Rob Quist has left a journalist in the hospital and has law enforcement authorities filing assualt charges.

Late Wednesday night, a story broke alledging that GOP candidate Gianforte assaulted Guardian politcal reporter Ben Jacobs just before a campaign event in Bozeman, Montana. A subsequent recording of the event released to the press by Jacobs confirms that some sort of altercation happened after Jacobs pressed Gianforte about the Congressional Budget Office's report on the Republican health care bill that could leave 23 million Americans uninsured in the next decade.

"I'm sick and tired of you guys!" Gianforte is heard yelling. "The last guy did the same damn thing. Get the hell out of here!"

Gianforte's campaign was quick to release a statement claiming that Jacobs "aggressively shoved a recorder in Greg's face, and began asking badgering questions." Several Fox News reporters at the scene describe eyewitness accounts that directly refute the series of events in the Gianforte statement. Being slammed to the floor, Jacobs had his glasses broken and ended up in a hospital.

Why is this local race so important?

It might sound odd to hear a race for one Congressional seat in Montana getting this frantic, but this special election is about sending a message for both parties in the lead up to the 2018 mid-terms.

Both parties have sent luminaries to support their respective candidates, with Donald Trump Jr. posing for photo ops on hunting trips with the candidate.

Populist indepedent Senator Bernie Sanders has also campaigned in support of Rob Quist, the Democratic candidate and part-time singing cowboy.

As of Thursday morning, Gianforte has been cited for Misdemeanor Assault by the Gallatin County Sheriff's Office and major Montana newspapers have rescinded their previous nominations of Gianforte. The polls close in Montana at 10 p.m. MST.

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