Commissioners in a Montana county remove election oversight from fellow Republican

By AMY BETH HANSON
Associated Press

A clerk and recorder who expressed doubt about the integrity of the election process during her 2022 campaign lost her election oversight duties in a vote by county commissioners. After taking six hours of public comment on Tuesday, two commissioners voted in favor of the county hiring an independent elections administrator while the third commissioner opposed the resolution. The motion was made in response to complaints about how elections have been run by Sandra Merchant. She says experienced election staff left when she was elected without teaching her how to do the job. The change takes effect immediately, but Merchant could challenge the issue in court.