Monica Joan Tranel (also Tranel-Michini; born May 4, 1966) is an American rower, lawyer, and political candidate. She competed at the

1996 File:1996 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: A Centennial Olympic Park bombing, bomb explodes at Centennial Olympic Park in Atlanta, set off by a radical Anti-abortion violence, anti-abortionist; The center fuel tank explodes on TWA Flight 8 ...

and

2000 Summer Olympics The 2000 Summer Olympics, officially the Games of the XXVII Olympiad and also known as Sydney 2000 (Dharug: ''Gadigal 2000''), the Millennium Olympic Games or the Games of the New Millennium, was an international multi-sport event held from 1 ...

. A member of the

Democratic Party Democratic Party most often refers to: *Democratic Party (United States) Democratic Party and similar terms may also refer to: Active parties Africa *Botswana Democratic Party *Democratic Party of Equatorial Guinea *Gabonese Democratic Party *Demo ...

, Tranel ran unsuccessfully for Montana's 1st congressional district in the

2022 United States House of Representatives elections in Montana The 2022 United States House of Representatives elections in Montana were held on November 8, 2022, to elect two United States House of Representatives, U.S. Representatives from Montana, one from each of its congressional districts. Prior to t ...

. She announced a bid for the same congressional seat in anticipation of the 2024 elections. Before running for Congress, she was twice a candidate for the Montana Public Service Commission and sought election to the Helena City Commission.

Early life and education

Tranel was born in

Big Horn, Wyoming Big Horn is an unincorporated community and census-designated place (CDP) in Sheridan County, Wyoming, United States. The population was 198 at the 2000 census and 490 at the 2010 census. Geography Big Horn is on the eastern slope of the Big H ...

, on May 4, 1966. She grew up across Montana, including in Miles City, Ashland, and

Billings Billings is the largest city in the U.S. state of Montana, with a population of 117,116 as of the 2020 census. Located in the south-central portion of the state, it is the seat of Yellowstone County and the principal city of the Billings Metrop ...

. She graduated from

Billings Central Catholic High School Billings Central Catholic High School is a private, Roman Catholic high school in Billings, Montana, United States. It is one of three Catholic high schools in the Roman Catholic Diocese of Great Falls-Billings. Background Billings Central Cathol ...

, where she competed in basketball and track. In 1988, Tranel earned a

Bachelor of Arts Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four years ...

from Gonzaga University. In 1991, she earned her

Juris Doctor The Juris Doctor (J.D. or JD), also known as Doctor of Jurisprudence (J.D., JD, D.Jur., or DJur), is a graduate-entry professional degree in law and one of several Doctor of Law degrees. The J.D. is the standard degree obtained to practice law ...

from Rutgers University–Camden.

Rowing

In 1991, Tranel started rowing in competition. In 1993, Tranel won a bronze medal in women's

coxed four A coxed four, also known as a 4+, is a rowing boat used in the sport of competitive rowing. It is designed for four persons who propel the boat with sweep oars and is steered by a coxswain. The crew consists of four rowers, each having one oa ...

at the

World Rowing Championships The World Rowing Championships is an international rowing regatta organized by FISA (the International Rowing Federation). It is a week-long event held at the end of the northern hemisphere summer and in non-Olympic years is the highlight of the ...

. In 1994, Tranel was rowing in the

Fairmount Rowing Association Fairmount Rowing Association is an amateur rowing club, founded in 1877. The facility, located at #2 Boathouse Row in the historic Boathouse Row of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, is on the National Register of Historic Places. Fairmount originally ...

. She competed in the

Tampere, Finland Tampere ( , , ; sv, Tammerfors, ) is a city in the Pirkanmaa Regions of Finland, region, located in the western part of Finland. Tampere is the most populous inland city in the Nordic countries. It has a population of 244,029; the Tampere u ...

, that year, where her team won gold. In 1995, Tranel won a silver media in the women's

eight 8 is a number, numeral, and glyph. 8 or eight may also refer to: Years * AD 8, the eighth year of the AD era * 8 BC, the eighth year before the AD era Art *The Eight (Ashcan School), a group of twentieth century painters associated with the As ...

at the World Championships at the

Royal Canadian Henley Rowing Course The Royal Canadian Henley Rowing Course is a rowing facility that is located in Port Dalhousie, St. Catharines, Ontario, Canada. The facility was constructed in 1903 as a permanent venue for the Royal Canadian Henley Regatta. The facility is locat ...

in Saint Catharines, Ontario. Tranel finished fourth in the women's eight at the

1996 Summer Olympics The 1996 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the XXVI Olympiad, also known as Atlanta 1996 and commonly referred to as the Centennial Olympic Games) were an international multi-sport event held from July 19 to August 4, 1996, in Atlanta, ...

. She also competed in the

, where she finished 12th in women's singles scull races. The

University of Montana The University of Montana (UM) is a public research university in Missoula, Montana. UM is a flagship institution of the Montana University System and its second largest campus. UM reported 10,962 undergraduate and graduate students in the fal ...

named one of their four-seat competition boats "The Tranel" in her honor. In 2015, Tranel placed 23rd in the

Head of the Charles Regatta The Head of the Charles Regatta, also known as HOCR, is a rowing head race held on the penultimate complete weekend of October (i.e., on the Friday that falls between the 16th and the 22nd of the month, and on the Saturday and Sunday immedia ...

Cambridge, Massachusetts Cambridge ( ) is a city in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States. As part of the Boston metropolitan area, the cities population of the 2020 U.S. census was 118,403, making it the fourth most populous city in the state, behind Boston, ...

Political and legal career

Local and state-level offices

In 2004, as a Republican, Tranel sought election to the Montana Public Service Commission while working as a staff attorney at the commission. She was defeated in the Republican primary. After working at the commission for four years, Tranel worked for Republican Senator

Conrad Burns Conrad Ray Burns (January 25, 1935 – April 28, 2016) was an American politician who served as a United States Senator from Montana and later was a lobbyist. He was only the second Republican popularly elected to represent Montana in the Senate ...

Washington, D.C. ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...

, for a short time, before returning to

Butte, Montana Butte ( ) is a consolidated city-county and the county seat of Silver Bow County, Montana, United States. In 1977, the city and county governments consolidated to form the sole entity of Butte-Silver Bow. The city covers , and, according to the ...

, in 2005 and opening a private practice in 2006. She later left the Republican Party. From 2010 to 2013, Tranel served as a trustee for the Montana Bar Association. In 2015, Tranel ran for the Helena City Commission. In 2020, as a

Democrat Democrat, Democrats, or Democratic may refer to: Politics *A proponent of democracy, or democratic government; a form of government involving rule by the people. *A member of a Democratic Party: **Democratic Party (United States) (D) **Democratic ...

, Tranel again sought election to the Montana Public Service Commission. She was defeated in the general election by Montana Senator

Jennifer Fielder Jennifer Fielder is an American politician who most recently served as a Republican serving in the Montana Senate. Political career Fielder was first elected to the state senate in 2012. At the time she lived in Thompson Falls and represented ...

, a Republican.

U.S. House of Representatives

Tranel was the Democratic candidate for Montana's western congressional district, running against Ryan Zinke and John Lamb. During the lead-up to the

, American vlogger

Hank Green William Henry Green II (born May 5, 1980) is an American vlogger, science communicator, entrepreneur, author, internet producer, and musician. He is known for producing the YouTube channel Vlogbrothers with his older brother, author John Green ...

interviewed Tranel in Missoula and

Bozeman Bozeman is a city and the county seat of Gallatin County, Montana, United States. Located in southwest Montana, the 2020 census put Bozeman's population at 53,293, making it the fourth-largest city in Montana. It is the principal city of th ...

. Tranel lost to Zinke in the general election, receiving 46% of the vote to Zinke's 50%. In July 2023, Tranel became the first candidate to officially announce a bid for Montana's first congressional district in 2024.

Personal life

Tranel has nine siblings. She and her second husband, Jack Morris, had two daughters. Tranel described herself as "a single mother" in 2015. Starting in 2001, she lived in

Helena, Montana Helena (; ) is the capital city of Montana, United States, and the county seat of Lewis and Clark County. Helena was founded as a gold camp during the Montana gold rush, and established on October 30, 1864. Due to the gold rush, Helena would ...

, for several years. She currently lives in Missoula with her husband, former state senator Greg Lind, and her three daughters.

References

External links

Monica Tranel for Congress
campaign website {{DEFAULTSORT:Tranel, Monica 1966 births Living people American female rowers People from Big Horn, Wyoming Rowers at the 1996 Summer Olympics Rowers at the 2000 Summer Olympics Olympic rowers for the United States World Rowing Championships medalists for the United States Women in Montana politics Montana Democrats Montana Republicans Rutgers Law School alumni 21st-century American women lawyers 21st-century American lawyers American athlete-politicians 21st-century American women politicians Gonzaga University alumni Candidates in the 2022 United States House of Representatives elections 21st-century American politicians