Montana Code 13-36-202. Reception of illegal votes — allegations and evidence
13-36-202. Reception of illegal votes — allegations and evidence. When the reception of illegal votes is alleged as a cause of contest, it is sufficient to state generally that in one or more specified voting precincts illegal votes were given to the candidate whose nomination or election is contested that, if taken from the candidate, will reduce the number of the candidate’s legal votes below the number of legal votes given to some other candidate for the same office. Testimony may not be received of any illegal votes unless the party contesting the election delivers to the opposite party, at least 3 days before trial, a written list of the number of illegal votes and by whom given that the party intends to prove at trial. This provision may not prevent the contestant from offering evidence of illegal votes not included in the statement if the contestant did not know and by reasonable diligence was unable to learn of the additional illegal votes and by whom they were given before delivering the written list.
Terms Used In Montana Code 13-36-202
- Candidate: means :
(a)an individual who has filed a declaration or petition for nomination, acceptance of nomination, or appointment as a candidate for public office as required by law;
(b)for the purposes of chapter 35, 36, or 37, an individual who has solicited or received and retained contributions, made expenditures, or given consent to an individual, organization, political party, or committee to solicit or receive and retain contributions or make expenditures on the individual's behalf to secure nomination or election to any office at any time, whether or not the office for which the individual will seek nomination or election is known when the:
(i)solicitation is made;
(ii)contribution is received and retained; or
(iii)expenditure is made; or
(c)an officeholder who is the subject of a recall election. See Montana Code 13-1-101
- Election: means a general, special, or primary election held pursuant to the requirements of state law, regardless of the time or purpose. See Montana Code 13-1-101
- Evidence: Information presented in testimony or in documents that is used to persuade the fact finder (judge or jury) to decide the case for one side or the other.
- State: when applied to the different parts of the United States, includes the District of Columbia and the territories. See Montana Code 1-1-201
- Testimony: Evidence presented orally by witnesses during trials or before grand juries.
- Trial: A hearing that takes place when the defendant pleads "not guilty" and witnesses are required to come to court to give evidence.