As Montana Dems look for a Senate nominee, some want Jeff Bridges

Montana Democrats will hold a convention Saturday to replace Sen. John Walsh, who dropped out of the U.S. Senate race last week following a report that he plagiarized large portions of a research paper in graduate school.

One suggested potential high-profile candidate won't make the cut, however.

Despite the efforts of some fans of "The Big Lebowski" star Jeff Bridges, the actor won't be the one to face off against Republican Rep. Steve Daines inNovember.

A Montana resident started a petition to draft Bridges, a longtime Montana resident and Democratic donor, to run.

"We're in the valley of death here, and I just thought, well here's somebody who could run," Billings, Montana, resident Libby Pratt told the Wall Street Journal. "He's the only candidate where you could put up a nude photo of him or a photo of him smoking a joint, and he would get more votes!"

Pratt is apparently more enthusiastic than Bridges' wife, Susan Geston. During an interview on Howard Stern's radio show, Bridges said that is wife told him, "Don't even think about it."

Instead, Democrats will likely choose between math teacher and state Rep. Amanda Curtis, state Sen. David Wanzenried and Dirk Adams, a local rancher. Even though she's in her first term, Curtis received the endorsement of the state's largest labor union which could give her a boost.

Adams, who lost to Walsh in the three-way June Senate primary, says he could self-fund his campaign. And Wanzenried has promised to emphasize his experience as a state legislator, according to the Billings Gazette.

Meanwhile, former Lt. Gov. John Bohlinger could be nominated at the convention Saturday but he told the Billings Gazette that he's "not going to be a sacrificial lamb" and won't accept the nomination unless state and national Democratic groups promise significant assistance.

Daines, a first-term congressman, was favored to win in November even before Walsh dropped out of the race. Republicans are counting on Montana as one of the six seats they need to flip to take control of the Senate.