New Montana Law Blocks Primary Losers from General Ballot
HB 207 restricts candidates who lost in a primary election from running for the same position in the general election.
Gov. Greg Gianforte signed a bill last week that revises election laws for candidates seeking office.
House Bill (HB) 207 makes changes for rules relating to write-in candidates, third-party candidates and filing deadlines.
State Sen. Jodee Etchart (R-Billings) sponsored this piece of legislation.
HB 207 restricts candidates who lost in a primary election from running for the same position in the general election through write-in candidacy or petitions.
This new law will prevent candidates already on the general election ballot from losing to someone they may have already defeated.
In addition, now under Montana law to appear on a ballot, third-party or independent candidates only need to collect signatures equal to 4 percent of the number of votes the winning candidate received in the last general election.
This rule also applies to new offices or redistricted areas, the state government will determine this signature threshold.
The new rule will make a big difference in how many signatures candidates running for Congress will need to gather.
To illustrate, Sen. Tim Sheehy (R-MT) received 319,682 votes in his Senate race against incumbent Sen. Jon Tester. The new Montana law will require these candidates to get 12,787 signatures. Under the old law it would have required 15,984 signatures.
In the 2024 House race, Rep. Troy Downing (R-MT-02) defeated Democrat John Driscoll by receiving 181,832 votes.. For third-party or independent candidates to qualify in this race, they will need 7,273 signatures. The previous law would have made the required number 9,092.
Regarding the filing deadlines of candidates seeking office, it must happen between 90 to 105 days before the primary election. Previously, the days ranged from 85 to 145 days.
For write-in candidates, they must file their candidacy 90 to 105 days before the general election. Furthermore, these candidates will file a declaration of intent to be a write-in candidate 90 days before the election. The previous law required 65 days.
During hearings on HB 207, Montana Libertarian Party Chair Melissa Wong testified against the bill. She said this bill reduced voter choice.
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Zachery Schmidt is the founder of The Montana Chronicles. If you have any tips, please send them to montanachronicles@proton.me.
Photo “Person Voting” by Lorie Shaull. CC BY 2.0.