The Republican-controlled Montana State Legislature rejected a request for a special session to pass legislation strengthening protections against alien voting.
Secretary of State Christi Jacobsen announced on Monday that three separate requests sent to Montana lawmakers for a special legislative session to address various issues, including noncitizen voting, failed to receive enough votes. Montana’s chief lawmaking body only meets during odd-numbered years, meaning legislators are not slated to meet again until January 2025.
The requests submitted to Jacobsen last month sought to convene lawmakers for a special session in Helena starting on June 24. According to the Daily Montanan, which is a project of the left-wing media operation States Newsroom, the Secretary of State “has five days to send a poll to legislators asking if they wish to convene a special session,” which requires support from a majority — at least 76 legislators — to be called.
In addition to alien voting, the other applications for a special session sought to tackle illegal immigration and marijuana taxation, and state judicial election reform.
Despite controlling 102 of Montana’s 150 legislative seats, Republicans failed to pass all three requests. The application sponsored by the Montana Freedom Caucus that aimed to increase safeguards against voting by foreign nationals received support from just 52 lawmakers. The measure received 60 “no” votes, while 38 lawmakers didn’t vote either way.
The proposed constitutional amendment would have required individuals to provide “documentary proof of citizenship” to qualify to vote.
Meanwhile, the request submitted by House Speaker
