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HELENA, Mont. — With one week until Montana’s 2026 Primary Election, Secretary of State Christi Jacobsen and the Montana Election Team are reminding voters of important information to ensure their voices are heard.
“As of Tuesday morning, nearly 125,000 absentee ballots had been received by county election officials across the state,” said Secretary Jacobsen. “For those absentee voters wishing to mail their ballot to their county election office, USPS officials recommend mailing them no later than today, Tuesday, May 26, to ensure they are received by your county election office by the deadline of 8 p.m. on Election Day (June 2nd). Voters can also return their ballot in person directly to their local election officials.”
“The Montana Election Team reminds voters to vote only one party’s ballot during the Primary Election, place that voted ballot in the secrecy envelope, then place the secrecy envelope containing the voted ballot in your return signature envelope,” Secretary Jacobsen continued. “Sign your name, add the date, and include your birth year on the return signature envelope.”
Election officials remind voters that they can track the status of their absentee ballot using the Secretary of State’s VoteMT.gov website. Voters tracking their absentee ballot will see the following under the “ballot status” category:
- SENT: The county election office issued and sent an absentee ballot.
- RECEIVED: The county election office received a voter’s returned absentee ballot.
- ACCEPTED: The county election office received and verified a voter’s returned absentee ballot, and it is ready for counting.
- REJECTED: The county election office received a voter’s returned absentee ballot, which may contain a missing and/or incorrect signature/birth year. Voters can easily resolve a rejected ballot by visiting https://votemt.gov/resolve-my-ballot/.
As of Tuesday morning, roughly one-quarter of one percent of the ballots issued were in a rejected status, and election officials statewide are contacting those voters to resolve potential missing or incorrect information and ensure their votes are counted.
“The Montana Election Team has done a fantastic job notifying voters of important election information through Public Service Announcements (PSAs), press releases, social media posts, direct voter outreach, and more,” said Secretary Jacobsen, whose office has led a months-long, thorough voter outreach campaign.
Montana election officials are also warning voters of the increased potential for long lines on Election Day after a court order blocked implementation of Senate Bill 490. Voters wishing to avoid potentially long lines on Election Day may register, update their registration, and cast their vote in person through their local county election office ahead of Election Day. Montanans voting at the polling place on Election Day are reminded that election workers will request photo identification such as a driver’s license, passport, or Tribal ID. Detailed voter ID information is available at VoteMT.gov.
“Election officials are proud to provide our Montana voters with an efficient process that allows for a safe, secure, accessible, and transparent election,” said Secretary Jacobsen. “We’re honored to serve and look forward to Election Night to share the results with Montanans!”