Some “republicans” funded by a liberal think tank have managed to get the Montana supreme court to forget how to read and understand the Montana Constitution, so signature collection will be allowed on Ballot Initiative #12 (Constitutional Initiative 126). This initiative is to do away with partisan primaries by putting all candidates on one primary ballot with no indication of party affiliation, then send the top 4 vote-getters to the general election. YIKES. In Montana, if you hear “moderate candidates”, “boost 3rd-party candidates”, or “fair democracy”, you can pretty well assume you are listening to a democrat.
Here is the text of the initiative
Statement of Purpose and Implication:
CI-126 amends the Montana Constitution to provide a top-four primary election open to all voters and candidates followed by a general election. All candidates appear on a single primary election ballot, and the four candidates receiving the most votes advance to the general election. The ballot may list a candidate’s political party preference, but a candidate is not required to be nominated by a political party to qualify for the ballot. If candidates are required to gather signatures, the number required may not exceed five percent of the votes received by the winning candidate in the last election. CI-126 applies to elections for governor and lieutenant governor, secretary of state, auditor, attorney general, superintendent of public instruction, state representative, state senator, United States representative, United States Senator, and other offices as provided by law.
Don’t sign the petition.