HELENA, Mont. — More than 150 candidate filings have been processed with the Montana Secretary of State’s Office since candidate filing officially opened on Thursday, January 13, 2022.
As of 5 p.m. on Friday, January 21, 2022, 154 candidate filings had been processed with the Secretary of State’s Office. Twenty-eight candidates filed this week, compared to the 126 that filed during the first three days.
Candidate filing formally kicks off the 2022 election season in Montana. The state will have two United States Representative seats on the ballot after the U.S. Census Bureau announced its state population data in April. As of Friday, five candidates had filed to run for the U.S. House — three in District 1, Montana’s western district, and two in District 2, the state’s eastern district.
District boundaries were designated by the Montana Districting and Apportionment Committee.
In all, 19 non-legislative filings have been filed in the opening nine days.
Meanwhile, 135 Legislative candidates have made things official, with 103 candidate filings for the Montana House and 32 more for the Montana Senate. To date, 75 Republicans, 57 Democrats, and three Libertarians have filed for the Montana Legislature.
All 100 State Representative seats will be on the 2022 ballot, while 26 State Senator positions will also be decided by Montana voters. Montana State Representatives serve two-year terms, while State Senators serve terms of four years.
Of the 154 candidates to file to date, 63 are incumbents — 54 Legislative and nine non-legislative. Eighty-one candidates filed on the opening day, with 12 appearing in person at the Secretary of State’s Office.
Statewide, state district, or Legislative candidates can file online, in person at the Secretary of State’s Office, or by mail or fax (the filing fee must be paid at the time of filing). Local candidates file with the county election office.
For more information about candidate filing and the offices on the 2022 ballot, visit the “File For Office” page on the Montana Secretary of State’s website. Montana’s 2022 Election Calendars are also available online.
Candidate filing closes at 5 p.m. on March 14, 2022.
