The Montana Association of Clerks and Recorders and Election Administrators president sent a letter Wednesday to House Speaker Austin Knudsen, asking him to bring an amendment to the House floor as soon as possible that would allow mail-in ballots for the May 25 special election. It’s a proposal that the speaker and other top Republicans oppose, saying such an election process favors Democrats. Voters will cast ballots to fill the seat vacated by Ryan Zinke who was named U.S. secretary of the interior under President Donald Trump. Earlier attempts to get lawmakers to support a mail-in ballot have failed. On Friday, Democratic Gov. Steve Bullock used his amendatory veto powers and rewrote House Bill 83, sponsored by Democratic Rep. Bryce Bennett of Missoula. He specified that the special election to fill the vacancy for U.S. representative be conducted by mail.
A spokeswoman for GOP House leadership said comments she made last week regarding this issue still stand.
“The governor is not a legislator,” Lindsey Singer said. “It’s unfortunate that he’s trying to use his power to shoehorn a completely different piece of legislation into a simple cleanup bill that has already moved through the process. Seeing this legislation a second time doesn’t change what it is. It’s bad policy.”
Full Article: Clerks association chief wants ballot issue on House floor.