Lewis and Clark District Court Judge Christopher Abbott on Wednesday ruled that two Republican lawmakers will be allowed to stay on November’s ballot, halting a new opinion last week by the attorney general that would have booted them.  Rep. Llew Jones, Republican nominee for Senate District 9, and Rep. Steve Fitzpatrick, Republican nominee for House […]

Montana District Court Judge Chris Abbott said on Tuesday afternoon he will decide quickly on a lawsuit filed by two longtime Republican state legislators over Attorney General Austin Knudsen’s reinterpretation of  the state’s term limit statue. Knudsen published his opinion just days before the secretary of state must certify who will be on the November […]

A new legal interpretation of Montana’s term limit law is colliding with an approaching deadline to finalize the November ballot, setting up a court fight over whether two veteran Republican lawmakers can compete for seats in the 2027 Legislature.

Montana House Majority Leader Steve Fitzpatrick said Thursday he’s going to have to file a lawsuit to stay on the ballot after a decision from Attorney General Austin Knudsen this week affected how term limits are calculated.

Two Republican lawmakers filed a lawsuit Friday over a term limit decision made by Attorney General Austin Knudsen this week that would remove them from the ballot in November. The legal action comes as the state Republican Party is preparing to replace the candidates on the ballot, barring a judge’s intervention.  Montana lawmakers are limited to […]

Montana House Majority Leader Steve Fitzpatrick said Thursday he’s going to have to file a lawsuit to stay on the ballot after a decision from Attorney General Austin Knudsen this week affected how term limits are calculated. Fitzpatrick, who ran unopposed for re-election in the Republican primary, called the decision from the attorney general a […]