- Montana « Bullock Directive and
Subsequent Lawsuits
August 6, 2020
Governor Bullock to Allow Counties the Choice to Conduct Mail Ballot Election and Expand Early Voting for November General Election
Governor Steve Bullock today issued a directive to ensure all eligible Montanans can safely vote in the 2020 November general election by allowing counties to expand voting by mail and early voting. Whether or not they provide mail ballots, all counties will be required to offer in person voting opportunities and take precautions to ensure Montanans have the option to register or vote safely.
“I am in agreement with our bipartisan election administrators – who are the ones on the ground with the first-hand knowledge of how to successfully conduct an election – that we must protect Montanans’ right to vote, while protecting the public’s health,” Governor Bullock said. “Locally elected officials best understand the voting needs of their communities, and taking this action now ensures they will have the time to make the right decisions for their localities. With this approach we can protect that fundamental right to vote, while easing crowding and pressure on voting on Election Day.”
The directive permits counties, at their discretion, to expand access to voting by mail and early voting. Counties that opt to vote by mail will still require counties to allow in person voting. All counties must ensure appropriate social distancing to provide safe voting and voter registration for all Montanans.
For the primary election, county election administrators adeptly managed the change in procedures and held a safe election marked by an increase in voter turnout compared to previous primary elections. In July, the bipartisan Montana Association of Clerk and Recorders and Election Administrators as well as the Montana Association of Counties requested that Governor Bullock again give counties the option to conduct a mail ballot election in November. Their request stressed the ethical concerns with following standard election procedures, which would produce serious risks for voters and poll workers alike—effectively forcing Montanans to choose between their safety and the right to vote. The election administrators also stressed the chaos that could follow if polling locations are closed at the last minute or if counties are forced to consolidate polling locations in response to outbreaks.
The option to provide mail ballots while expanding early voting will protect Montanans’ right to vote, while protecting the public’s health. The CDC has recognized that in person voting on election day increases the risk of transmitting COVID-19, and has urged states to use voting methods that reduce crowd size. Many Montana election workers are over the age of 60 and are often in close proximity to each other, large crowds, and interact with paper, pens, and other items that could be infected and exchanged frequently.
Governor Bullock’s Directive contains three central components:
- Counties may choose to send mail ballots and expand early voting for the November 3, 2020 general election.
- Counties are encouraged to publicize available options and to work with nonprofit organizations to ensure that all Montanans will have access to a ballot, whether in person, early, or by mail.
- All counties must establish, implement, and enforce social distancing policies at polling locations, designated drop-off locations, or other public-facing portions of facilities involved in voting.
Additionally, the Directive provides expanded timelines for voter registration, ballot distribution, and early voting opportunities. The Directive extends the close of regular voter registration until 10 days before the election to minimize the need for in-person registration or lines. County election administrators will be able to make ballots available from Oct. 2 until the end of the election. Mail-in ballots will be sent on Oct. 9 and no postage will be required to return ballots by mail.
Finally, the Directive requires that counties, regardless of their voting procedures, implement social distancing guidelines to make voter registration and voting safer for all Montanans and reduce spreading COVID-19 within communities. As CDC guidelines provide, counties must ensure a minimum of six feet of distancing between individuals at polling locations, designated drop-off locations, or public-facing portions of facilities involved in voting.
The full Directive is linked here.
Republican National Committee
September 2, 2020
RNC, Trump Campaign and Republican Groups Sue Montana Governor Bullock Over Unconstitutional Vote-By-Mail Power Grab
WASHINGTON – The Republican National Committee, Donald J. Trump for President, Inc., the National Republican Senatorial Committee, and the Montana Republican State Central Committee today sued Montana Governor Steve Bullock over the Governor’s August 6th directive that grants counties the ability to conduct universal vote-by-mail elections and dilutes the integrity of Montana’s election system.“Yet another Democrat Governor – who conveniently is running for election – is using the coronavirus as a power grab to take control of Montana’s elections in the name of ‘health.’ This rushed and unconstitutional directive creates a patchwork election code with no uniform procedures across the state, automatically mails ballots to voters, and invites fraud, manipulation and administrative chaos. Upending our elections process in the 11th hour is a recipe for disaster.” – RNC Chairwoman Ronna McDaniel
“Even though Governor Bullock has watched President Trump’s team take down the unilateral power grabs of one liberal governor after another, he has now taken his ill-fated aim at last-minute election rule changes—changes that would stack the deck for his own Senate race. The power to direct Montana’s elections lies with the state’s legislature, which already has key safeguards in place to protect each Montana voter’s ballot. President Trump and his team are standing up for a free, fair election that all Montanans can have faith in.” - Matthew Morgan, Trump 2020 General Counsel
Montana currently does allow for vote-by-mail, but only at the request of the voter and with a written signature that matches the voter’s registration form. With this new directive, not only are these safeguards thrown out the window, but it is an overstep of the Governor’s authority as the U.S. Constitution grants state legislatures the power to determine the time, place, and manner of elections. Similarly, the Montana Constitution holds that the state legislature provides the requirements for elections, not the Governor. Worse, the Governor is manipulating the state’s election processes while he is also a candidate on the ballot for the U.S. Senate.
In another blow for election security, this directive creates a one-time-only election code with varying procedures across the state. In some counties, vote-by-mail ballots will be automatically sent to every voter, including those who have moved, died, or don’t want a ballot. This irresponsible decision invites fraud, coercion, theft or otherwise illegal voting and dilutes the votes of honest citizens.
You can view the filing.
Background:
The RNC is currently involved in approximately 40 election-related cases, the vast majority of which were filed by Democrats seeking to eliminate existing election safeguards. The RNC continues to fight back against these assaults on the integrity of our elections. Recently, the RNC intervened in Ohio to challenge two suits that seek to overhaul Ohio’s election system and signature matching procedures. In Nevada, the RNC filed to stop the implementation of Assembly Bill 4, which takes unprecedented steps to dismantle voter protection standards in Nevada. Additionally, the RNC intervened to protect election integrity in Minnesota against Democrat attempts to remove ballot deadlines by Election Day and prevent the sending of ballots to inactive voters. The RNC has won on several major cases. In Iowa, the RNC won a victory when a court ruled that rogue County Auditors must stop pre-filling out personal information on absentee ballot requests. An additional victory came in Florida when Priorities USA and the Democrat plaintiffs dismissed every substantive claim in Nielsen v. DeSantis, a radical lawsuit brought in Florida that among other things, sought to force Florida to count ballots that arrive after Election Day and strike down the state’s ban on ballot harvesting. The Commonwealth Court of Pennsylvania also recently handed Republicans a big victory, throwing out a left-wing lawsuit to allow ballots to be counted after Election Day. Similar radical lawsuits are being fought in states like Maine, Michigan, North Carolina, and Arizona. The RNC recently doubled its legal budget to $20 million to fight these efforts, and you can learn more at www.ProtectTheVote.com.
True the Vote
September 10, 2020
True the Vote Fights to Protect Montana
Voters, Challenges All-Mail Election Authorized by
Governor Bullock
HOUSTON, Texas – True the Vote this week took action representing several Montana voters, two state office candidates, and a local Republican Party (collectively “Voters”) in a lawsuit filed against Montana Governor Steve Bullock’s order allowing counties to choose all-mail elections for the November 3 general election.
Catherine Engelbrecht, founder and president of True the Vote, said, “Democratic government officials and candidates, such as Governor Bullock, are spearheading a national effort by the left to dispense with any notion of fairness in elections. By authorizing an all-mail election two months before election day, Governor Bullock has invited more voter disenfranchisement and election fraud into the process and blatantly disregarded the rights of Montana voters to push through his own political agenda to run for U.S. Senate. True the Vote and our allies are on the front lines as we fight on behalf of all voters to preserve election integrity and to uphold state election laws in Montana and nationwide.”
James Bopp, Jr., of The Bopp Law Firm, PC, lead counsel for the voters and General Counsel for True the Vote, said, “There was no need for Governor Bullock’s all-mail-election order because in-person and absentee-ballot voting were already compliant with the Governor’s own order reopening Montana. The Governor has no authority to override the legislature’s balancing of election access and integrity. His order violates the right to vote of Montana voters by opening Montana up to election fraud and the chaos of mail-in voting evidenced already across the country.”
The Governor claims emergency laws and COVID-19 allow him to displace the legislature’s ban on such elections. However, his own Phase 2 order reopening Montana permits voting in-person with social distancing precautions among other measures. Additionally, Montana offers no-excuse absentee balloting by simple request for those with special needs. Therefore, an in-person election with absentee ballots was already fully compliant with the Governor’s Phase 2 order, and no emergency justifies the all-mail election allowed by Governor Bullock, who also happens to be a candidate for U.S. Senate in the November election.
The voters challenged Bullock’s order on four grounds.
- They argued that the Governor’s order violates the U.S. Constitution’s requirement that state elections involving federal candidates be done as the legislature, not the governor, prescribes. No emergency authority overrides that constitutional requirement.
- The voters argued a violation of their right to vote based on the fact that all-mail elections create a substantial likelihood of illegal votes being counted, which dilutes legitimate votes.
- The voters argued a violation of their right to vote because the flood of votes caused by all-mail elections creates a substantial risk that votes will be lost or tardy and so not counted.
- The voters argued that in counties that choose all-mail voting, the voting power of county voters would be enhanced over that of voters in counties that decline all-mail voting, violating the right to vote and equal protection of voters in non-mail-vote counties.
True the Vote commended the Trump campaign’s lawsuit in Montana last week on behalf of his campaign, the RNC, and the Montana Republican Party. The True the Vote case today is different in two ways: (1) True the Vote is representing voters and state candidates as Plaintiffs, and (2) the True the Vote case makes additional claims for violation of the right to vote by direct disenfranchisement of voters caused by the universal mail-in balloting and by the failure to have uniform statewide voting standards as required by Bush v. Gore. The True the Vote case is expected to be consolidated with the Trump campaign’s case.
The complaint is available here and
the preliminary injunction memo is here.
True the Vote continues to take action in states
across the country to preserve election integrity in
the 2020 election and has already initiated lawsuits
in Michigan, Nevada, Virginia, New Mexico, and
now, Montana. As the country’s
largest voters’ rights and election integrity
organization, True the Vote has been on the front
lines of election fraud prevention since its
founding in 2009.
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True the Vote (TTV) is an IRS-designated 501(c)3 voters’ rights organization, founded to inspire and equip volunteers for involvement at every stage of our electoral process. TTV empowers organizations and individuals across the nation to actively protect the rights of legitimate voters, regardless of their political party affiliation. For more information, please visit www.truethevote.org.
U.S. District Judge Dana L. Christensen ruling in Trump et al. v. Bullock [PDF]
Governor Steve Bullock
Wednesday, September 30, 2020
Governor Bullock Statement on Federal Court Affirming Vote by Mail and Early Voting in Montana
MONTANA – Governor Steve Bullock today issued the following statement regarding a decision by the United States District Court for the District of Montana that affirms the decisions by local counties to expand vote by mail and early voting in Montana for the November election.
“There is nothing more sacred in our democracy than the right to vote, and no duty of government more important than to keep its citizens safe,” said Governor Bullock. “I’m pleased that today’s decision will enable hundreds of thousands of Montanans to vote safely – in person or by mail – this coming election. Montanans can rest assured that our local election administrators will preserve the security and integrity of the election process.”
The Court’s decision is the first in the country that follows a full trial on efforts to undermine mail ballots. The Court rejected all of the claims against Montana’s early voting and mail ballot option.
In August, Governor Bullock issued a directive to ensure all eligible Montanans can safely vote in the 2020 November election by allowing counties, at their discretion, to expand vote by mail and early voting. Forty-six of Montana’s fifty-six counties opted to do so, and all counties are required to offer in person voting and take precautions to protect from COVID-19. This was the same directive issued for the June primary election.
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True the Vote
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
October 7, 2020
True the Vote Seeks to Elevate Montana Vote by Mail Lawsuit to Supreme Court,
“The progressive Left is spearheading a nationwide effort to overturn state election laws that prevent fraud and abuse and to manipulate election procedures that they think favor their election,” said Catherine Engelbrecht, founder and president of True the Vote. “True the Vote and our allies are on the front lines to fight for election integrity and preserve state election laws. We urge the Supreme Court to quickly act in this matter, not only to solve the problem, but also to prevent the overwhelming of our courts after Election Day, when the nearly 350 election-related lawsuits that are currently pending could stand to throw the result of our election into complete chaos. This is about protecting the voting rights of Montanans and all Americans and ensuring every legal vote cast is counted.”
Nearly 350 election-related lawsuits have already been filed across the country, with many more expected to come by the Democrat Party and their allies who claim that COVID-19 justifies setting aside numerous anti-fraud provisions of state election laws. This litigation flood is likely to overwhelm the courts and the Supreme Court if the Supreme Court doesn’t clearly and immediately reaffirm that only legislatures – not state officials or the courts – have the constitutional authority to adopt election laws by balancing election access with election integrity concerns, such as ballot fraud and a sudden deluge of mail ballots. Voters in the lawsuit are requesting the Court to explain that long-standing state election laws should not be overturned by state officials or state courts on the eve of an election, as Governor Bullock’s directive does.
Montana already has no-excuse “absentee ballots,” which any qualified voter can obtain by a simple application. Additionally, in-person voting has already began for early voting in compliance with the safeguards in the Montana Governor’s own COVID-19 Phase 2 reopening order. Thus, there was no COVID-19 emergency to justify the Governor invoking of any emergency powers to suspend Montana state election law and to authorize mail balloting. The Governor also happens to be a candidate for U.S. Senate in the November election.
“Mail ballots,” which are sent to all registered voters automatically without application, pose a heightened risk of ballot fraud and lost, tardy or disqualified ballots due to the sudden flood of paper. While Montana election law allows mail ballots in some local elections, it expressly bans them for federal, general elections as is happening on November 3.
Click here for more information on the lawsuit.
Click here for the application to the U.S. Supreme Court.
“Montana already had no-excuse ‘absentee ballots,’ and in-person voting is already being conducted safely under the Governor’s own reopening guidelines," said James Bopp, Jr., of The Bopp Law Firm, PC, lead counsel for the voters and General Counsel for True the Vote, said. "So there was no COVID-19 problem with voting, no need to flood the state with unsolicited 'mail ballots,’ and no emergency to trigger the Governor’s emergency powers to set aside state laws.”
“Under the U.S. Constitution, the Legislature, not a Governor, has the authority to prescribe how an election is to be conducted, and the Montana Legislature banned unsolicited mail ballots in general elections, which the Governor has set aside.," Bopp continued. "The directive opens Montana up to election fraud and the chaos of mail-in voting evidenced already across the country.”
“The U.S. Supreme Court needs to immediately step in to reaffirm the constitutional mandate that only long-standing, legislatively enacted laws govern elections," Bopp concluded. "Otherwise, we will continue to suffer this chaotic flood of litigation which will deprive voters of their right to vote by diluting their votes or by them not being count at all.”
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