Montana judge blocks law limiting Election Day voter registration

Montana judge blocks noon cutoff for Election Day registration

A Montana district judge has blocked the state from enforcing a 2025 law that would have limited voter registration on Election Day to before noon for presidential, U.S. Senate and U.S. House races, a move the judge said would disproportionately affect Native American and young voters.

District Judge Adam Larsen’s order, issued late Friday and sitting in a county that includes the state capital of Helena, prevents the state from enforcing the cutoff while the lawsuit proceeds. The trial in the case is scheduled for late August, after Montana’s primary election on June 2, so the restriction cannot take effect before voters head to the polls.

The ruling responded to the new state law enacted by the Republican-controlled Legislature last year. The law would have barred voters from casting ballots in federal races if they registered after noon on Election Day. The judge said Election Day registration has been “wildly popular” in Montana since 2006 and has drawn enough support that a 2014 statewide ballot measure to end the practice failed.

In the court’s discussion, Larsen pointed to what he described as an “undisputed record” showing that “a substantial number of Montana voters rely on Election Day registration, including during afternoon hours.” Larsen also said the record established that some voters would be unable to register prior to noon due to work schedules, travel constraints, polling-place hours or other unforeseen registration issues, arguing that an abrupt cutoff would deny eligible voters a practical path to registration.

Montana Attorney General Austin Knudsen’s office said it was disappointed by the ruling. Spokesperson Chase Scheuer said in an email that “Unrestricted voter registration on Election Day puts a undue burden on Montana’s election administrators who have very important jobs ensuring our elections are secure and run smoothly.” Larsen rejected the state’s argument that the change would make election administration easier, saying local election officials would handle voting in federal races differently from state and local races.

Larsen also described specific barriers that he said make an Election Day noon cutoff harder to meet for some groups. The judge wrote that Native American voters face “unique barriers” to voting, including long travel distances and limited access to transportation. He added that students and other young voters face obstacles to registering because of “scheduling constraints” and because they move more frequently.

The lawsuit was filed by the Montana Federation of Public Employees and later joined by Native American tribes that include the Blackfeet and Northern Cheyenne. Amanda Curtis, the president of the Montana public employees group, said the challenge defended “the fundamental right of every voice to be heard” from “overreaching politicians.”

The plaintiffs also challenged other changes in state law, including a change to the rules specifying which IDs students can use at the polls to register and vote. But Larsen concluded that the plaintiffs did not show that anyone had been prevented from voting because of the ID changes. Scheuer said the changes “bolster the integrity of Montana elections.”

The latest fight follows prior efforts by legislators to narrow Election Day registration access. In 2021, the Legislature enacted a law ending voter registration at noon the day before Election Day, but the Montana Supreme Court struck it down in 2024, saying it violated an “unequivocal fundamental right” protected by the state Constitution. The justices said more than 70,000 Montana voters had used Election Day registration since it began, and before lawmakers enacted the 2025 measure, their staff warned in a memo that the change could conflict with the Supreme Court’s 2024 decision.