Christi Jacobsen

AOC's return visit to Montana pleases both progressive Democrats and conservative Republicans – for different reasons. President Trump's effect on Montana's election is yet to be measured. A last minute infusion of PAC money to a Democratic Senate candidate raises questions. Voter interest in this mid-term election is hard to gauge.

Mail-in ballots are en route to voters across Montana. For those who haven’t registered to vote, a judge preserved the Election Day deadline to do so.

The U.S. Department of Justice has been asking states for their unredacted voter files, which contain personal information. Montana’s Secretary of State maintains she’s only released what’s publicly available, but state lawmakers are pushing for more answers.

Republican Senate candidate Kurt Alme comes out of the shadows. Former Sen. Jon Tester says he is "wait and see" on endorsing independent candidate Seth Bodnar. Republican House candidate Christi Jacobsen crams a lot of activities into her new ad. And the Gianforte administration backtracks on its ban of weekend rallies at the Capitol.

Secretary of State Christi Jacobsen is the third Republican in 24 hours to enter Montana's western district U.S. House race after Rep. Ryan Zinke announced he would retirement at the end of his term next January.

Although some 2026 candidates have been campaigning for months, the official registration period opened this week. Political hopefuls have two weeks to turn in their paperwork.

Midterm elections typically don't attract much attention, but 2026 may be different. With three of Montana's four seats in Congress on the ballot, nearly a dozen challengers have thrown their hat in the ring. Republican incumbents are favored in all three races, with the western district race seen as the most competitive.

Forward Montana and the Montana Public Interest Research Group say new voting regulations unduly burden young voters. The groups have successfully challenged similar legislation in recent years.

Montana legislators are considering bills to change how the state’s elections work. One bill would discard signatures from registered but inactive voters endorsing third-party candidates or ballot initiatives.

The U.S. Supreme Court this week declined to weigh in on a pair of state election laws declared unconstitutional by the Montana Supreme Court early last year. The laws sought to ban same-day voter registration and paid absentee ballot collection.