Monica Tranel
American rower, lawyer, and political candidate
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Monica Tranel (born 1966) is an American rower, lawyer, and political candidate. She competed at the 1996 and 2000 Summer Olympics. Tranel ran unsuccessfully for Montana's 1st congressional district as a member of the Democratic Party in 2022 and 2024.[1]
1966 (age 59–60)
Democratic (2006–present)
Rutgers University, Camden (JD)
Monica Tranel | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Tranel on Vlogbrothers, 2022 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Born | Monica Joan Tranel 1966 (age 59–60) Big Horn, Wyoming, U.S. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Party | Republican (before 2006) Democratic (2006–present) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Spouse | Greg Lind | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Education | Gonzaga University (BA) Rutgers University, Camden (JD) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Website | Campaign website | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Medal record
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In February 2026, Tranel announced her candidacy for the Montana House of Representatives, seeking to represent the 92nd district in the 2026 election.[2]
Early life and education
Tranel was born in Big Horn, Wyoming,[3][4][5][6] and grew up across Montana, including in Miles City, Ashland, and Billings.[5] She graduated from Billings Central Catholic High School, where she competed in basketball and track.[7]
At Gonzaga University, Tranel joined the school's rowing team.[8] In 1988, Tranel graduated from Gonzaga with a Bachelor of Arts.[9] In 1991, she earned her Juris Doctor from Rutgers University–Camden.[9]
Athletic career
Championship achievements
Monica Tranel represented the United States at five World Rowing Championships between 1993 and 2000.[10] Tranel won a bronze medal for the quadruple sculls as part of the women's team at the 1993 World Rowing Championships in Račice,[11] along with a silver medal in women's eight.[7] Tranel competed in the two thousand meters rowing at the 1995 World Rowing Championships as part of the US Women's eight Olympic rowing team, who went on to win gold.[12] She finished fourth in the women's eight at the 1996 Summer Olympics.[13][14]
Legacy
The University of Montana named one of their 40-foot (12 m) four-seat competition boats "The Tranel" in her honor.[15] In 2025, Tranel was elected to the National Rowing Hall of Fame.[16]
Political and legal career
Local and state-level offices
In 2004, Tranel unsuccessfully sought election as a Republican to the Montana Public Service Commission while working as a staff attorney at the commission.[17][18][19][20]
After working at the commission for four years, Tranel worked for Republican Senator Conrad Burns in Washington, D.C., for a short time, before returning to Butte, Montana, in 2005 and opening a private practice in 2006.[18][21] She later left the Republican Party.[21]
From 2010 to 2013, Tranel served as a trustee for the Montana Bar Association. In 2015, Tranel again ran for office, this time for the Helena City Commission, as a Democrat.[22][23][20]
In 2020, as a Democrat, Tranel again sought election to the Montana Public Service Commission.[20][24][25] She was defeated in the general election by Montana Senator Jennifer Fielder, a Republican.[26]
In February 2026 as a supervisor attorney at the public defender's office in Missoula, Tranel submitted a burglary defense case filing composed with the help of large language model tools. After the county prosecutor flagged the filing as AI-generated without disclosure, Tranel withdrew it. Concerns had been raised in 2025 about insufficient fact-checking of, and possible AI hallucinations contained in such documents, and the county policy subsequently required disclosure.[27]
U.S. House of Representatives
Tranel was the Democratic candidate for Montana's 1st congressional district, running against Ryan Zinke and John Lamb.[28][29][30][31][32] During the lead-up to the 2022 United States House of Representatives elections in Montana, American vlogger Hank Green interviewed Tranel in Missoula and Bozeman.[33] Tranel lost to Zinke in the general election, receiving 46.5% of the vote to Zinke's 49.6%.[34]
In July 2023, Tranel announced her bid for Montana's first congressional district in 2024.[1] In a reprise of the 2022 election, she lost to Zinke with 44.6% of the vote to Representative Zinke's 52.3%.[35]
Montana Legislature
In February 2026, Tranel announced she was running for the Montana state legislature, representing House District 92.[36]
