Montana voters to decide on nonpartisan Supreme Court elections

Summarised from 2 outlets · Updated 11 Oct, 11:48 · Archive

Montana voters will decide whether to enshrine nonpartisan judicial elections in the state constitution.

Montana's voters will decide in November whether to enshrine nonpartisan judicial elections in the state constitution. The ballot proposal follows Republican attempts to inject more partisanship into the state's officially nonpartisan Supreme Court elections after recent court rulings on abortion, voting and climate change displeased GOP officials.

Citizen activists responded by forcing a statewide vote on a constitutional amendment to preserve nonpartisan elections. The November ballot will present voters with an unusual choice: they will decide whether to mandate nonpartisan elections while simultaneously voting for two officially nonpartisan candidates for the state Supreme Court, one backed by the Republican Party and the other by organized labour and a Democratic-aligned group.

The battle ranks among the most intense of the roughly two dozen states holding November elections for their highest courts. Millions of dollars are being spent on the Montana contest, continuing a recent trend in the state and elsewhere. Last year, a record amount over $100 million was spent on a Wisconsin Supreme Court race that, though officially nonpartisan, kept liberals in narrow control of the court. Interest groups are focusing on court races in several states with the goal of positioning themselves for bigger races in 2028.

How it is being reported

• Nonpartisan state Supreme Court elections are being put to the test in MontanaMontana’s voters are set to decide a ballot proposal that would enshrine nonpartisan judicial elections in the state constitution.News4Jax · 11 Oct, 11:10
• Nonpartisan state Supreme Court elections are being put to the test in MontanaMontana’s voters are set to decide a ballot proposal that would enshrine nonpartisan judicial elections in the state constitution.Clickorlando · 11 Oct, 11:10

In this story: Montana · Wisconsin · Republican Party

This summary was written by AI from the headlines and standfirsts above, and states as fact only what at least two outlets report. How we use AI · Report a problem