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Montana politics, elections and legislative news

Secretary of State likely discriminated against Cascade County applicant, labor dept. says

Montana Secretary of State Christi Jacobsen likely discriminated against an applicant for Cascade County Clerk and Recorder. That’s according to findings from the Montana Department of Labor and Industry.

Rina Fontana Moore applied for the job after the county made it a position for hire rather than an elected office. She had previously held the office for 16 years as a Democrat.

Jacobsen sent an email to Cascade County officials urging them not to hire Moore, saying it would undermine voters.

Moore filed a complaint, saying Jacobsen was discriminating against her because of her political beliefs.

The Labor Department found there is a reasonable cause that Moore was discriminated against.

The Secretary of State’s office did not immediately respond to MTPR’s request for comment.

The parties now go through a process to settle on damages.

Aaron graduated from the University of Minnesota School of Journalism in 2015 after interning at Minnesota Public Radio. He landed his first reporting gig in Wrangell, Alaska where he enjoyed the remote Alaskan lifestyle and eventually moved back to the road system as the KBBI News Director in Homer, Alaska. He joined the MTPR team in 2019. Aaron now reports on all things in northwest Montana and statewide health care.
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