Voters in Montana to decide on two electoral system ballot measures in Nov. 2024

The Montana Secretary of State’s office certified two initiatives, Initiative CI-126 and Initiative CI-127, for the November ballot on Aug. 22. The two initiatives will appear on the ballot along with Initiative CI-128, which would create a state constitutional right to abortion.

Montanans for Election Reform submitted signatures for the initiatives in June. The committee reported collecting more than 200,000 signatures for both initiatives. Each initiative required 60,359 valid signatures to qualify for the ballot.

Initiative CI-126 would create a top-four primary system for elections for governor, lieutenant governor, state executives, state legislators, and congressional offices. Under the system, every candidate would run in the same primary. Candidates could list a political party but would not be required to. Voters would be allowed to choose one candidate per office. The top four vote-getters would advance to the general election, regardless of their partisan affiliations.

Currently, in Montana, primaries are partisan and open, meaning a voter can participate in the political party primary of his or her choice. A voter does not need to be registered or affiliated with a party to vote in that party’s primary. The winner of a primary election is the candidate who receives the highest number of votes cast for that office, even if he or she does not win a majority of votes cast.

Initiative CI-127 would require that a candidate for governor, lieutenant governor, secretary of state, auditor, attorney general, superintendent of public instruction, state legislature, and congressional offices win the election with a majority of the vote (rather than a plurality), as provided by law. The state legislature would need to pass a law providing for an electoral system with majority vote winners. Examples of majority-vote systems include runoff elections and ranked-choice voting.

Currently, elections in Montana are decided using a plurality voting system in which the winner of an election is the candidate that received the highest number of votes. Candidates do not need to win an outright majority of the vote to be elected.

Former State Rep. Frank Garner (R) is one of the initiatives’ primary sponsors. Garner said, “We know Montanans are fed up with divisive politics, inflammatory rhetoric and an unwillingness to work across the aisle to find solutions to the real challenges facing Montana’s families. It’s time for a change.”

Montanans for Election Reform raised $4.2 million from groups including Article IV and Unite America.

Montana Secretary of State Christi Jacobson (R) opposes the initiatives. She said, “I have serious concerns with the efforts funded with dark money to impose Ranked Choice Voting. It is a very deceptive practice and would undermine all of our efforts to secure our elections in Montana. It would also create serious voter confusion and frustration.”

Ten ballot measures concerning electoral systems, such as primary elections and ranked-choice voting, have been certified for the 2024 ballot in seven states and Washington, D.C.