Terms Used In Montana Code > Title 2 > Chapter 4 > Part 1 - General Provisions

• Amendment: A proposal to alter the text of a pending bill or other measure by striking out some of it, by inserting new language, or both. Before an amendment becomes part of the measure, thelegislature must agree to it.
• Application for voter registration: means a voter registration form prescribed by the secretary of state that is completed and signed by an elector, is submitted to the election administrator, and contains voter registration information subject to verification as provided by law. See Montana Code 13-1-101
• Ballot: means the ballot or set of ballots that is to be returned by a specified election day. See Montana Code 13-19-102
• Ballot: means a paper ballot counted manually or a paper ballot counted by a machine, such as an optical scan system or other technology that automatically tabulates votes cast by processing the paper ballots. See Montana Code 13-1-101
• 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

• Cast: means accepted by the secretary of state in accordance with 13-25-307(3). See Montana Code 13-25-302
• Corporation: A legal entity owned by the holders of shares of stock that have been issued, and that can own, receive, and transfer property, and carry on business in its own name.
• Covered voter: means :

  (a)a uniformed-service voter or an overseas voter who is registered to vote in Montana;

  (b)a uniformed-service voter whose voting residence is in Montana and who otherwise satisfies Montana's voter eligibility requirements;

  (c)an overseas voter who, before leaving the United States, was last eligible to vote in Montana and, except for a state residency requirement, otherwise satisfies Montana's voter eligibility requirements;

  (d)an overseas voter who, before leaving the United States, would have been last eligible to vote in Montana had the voter then been of voting age and, except for a state residency requirement, otherwise satisfies Montana's voter eligibility requirements. See Montana Code 13-21-102

• Dependent: A person dependent for support upon another.
• Dependent: means an individual recognized as a dependent by a uniformed service. See Montana Code 13-21-102
• Digital signature: means the certificate-based digital identification code issued to qualified personnel by the U. See Montana Code 13-21-102
• Disability: means a temporary or permanent mental or physical impairment such as:

  (a)impaired vision;

  (b)impaired hearing;

  (c)impaired mobility. 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
• Election administrator: means , except as provided in subsection (14)(b), the county clerk and recorder or the individual designated by a county governing body to be responsible for all election administration duties, except that with regard to school elections not administered by the county, the term means the school district clerk. See Montana Code 13-1-101
• Election official: means an election administrator, election deputy, or election judge. See Montana Code 13-1-101
• Elector: means an individual selected as presidential elector under this part. See Montana Code 13-25-302
• Elector: means an individual qualified to vote under state law. See Montana Code 13-1-101
• Ex officio: Literally, by virtue of one's office.
• Federal election: means an election in even-numbered years in which an elector may vote for individuals for the office of president of the United States or for the United States congress. See Montana Code 13-1-101
• Federal postcard application: means the application prescribed under section 101(b)(2) of the Uniformed and Overseas Citizens Absentee Voting Act, 52 U. See Montana Code 13-21-102
• Federal write-in absentee ballot: means the ballot described in section 103 of the Uniformed and Overseas Citizens Absentee Voting Act, 52 U. See Montana Code 13-21-102
• Fraud: Intentional deception resulting in injury to another.
• General election: means an election that is held for offices that first appear on a primary election ballot, unless the primary is canceled as authorized by law, and that is held on a date specified in 13-1-104. See Montana Code 13-1-101
• Inactive elector: means an individual who failed to respond to confirmation notices and whose name was placed on the inactive list pursuant to 13-2-220 or 13-19-313. See Montana Code 13-1-101
• Inactive list: means a list of inactive electors maintained pursuant to 13-2-220 or 13-19-313. See Montana Code 13-1-101
• Individual: means a human being. See Montana Code 13-1-101
• Jurisdiction: (1) The legal authority of a court to hear and decide a case. Concurrent jurisdiction exists when two courts have simultaneous responsibility for the same case. (2) The geographic area over which the court has authority to decide cases.
• Mail ballot election: means any election that is conducted under Title 13, chapter 19, by mailing ballots to all active electors. See Montana Code 13-1-101
• Majority leader: see Floor Leaders
• Majority leader: means the leader of the majority party, elected by the caucus as provided in 5-2-221. See Montana Code 1-1-208
• Majority party: means the party with the most members in a house of the legislature, subject to subsection (2). See Montana Code 1-1-208
• Majority whip: See Whips.
• Military-overseas ballot: means :

  (a)a federal write-in absentee ballot;

  (b)an absentee ballot specifically prepared or distributed for use by a covered voter in accordance with this chapter; or

  (c)a ballot cast by a covered voter in accordance with this chapter. See Montana Code 13-21-102

• Overseas voter: means a United States citizen who resides outside the United States who would otherwise be qualified to vote in the last place in which the person was domiciled before leaving the United States. See Montana Code 13-21-102
• Partnership: A voluntary contract between two or more persons to pool some or all of their assets into a business, with the agreement that there will be a proportional sharing of profits and losses.
• Person: means an individual, corporation, association, firm, partnership, cooperative, committee, including a political committee, club, union, or other organization or group of individuals or a candidate as defined in subsection (8). See Montana Code 13-1-101
• Person: includes a corporation or other entity as well as a natural person. See Montana Code 1-1-201
• Place of deposit: means a location designated by the election administrator pursuant to 13-19-307 for a mail ballot election conducted under Title 13, chapter 19. See Montana Code 13-1-101
• Political subdivision: means a political subdivision of the state, including a school district. See Montana Code 13-19-102
• Power of attorney: A written instrument which authorizes one person to act as another's agent or attorney. The power of attorney may be for a definite, specific act, or it may be general in nature. The terms of the written power of attorney may specify when it will expire. If not, the power of attorney usually expires when the person granting it dies. ^{Source: OCC}
• President: means the president of the United States. See Montana Code 13-25-302
• President pro tempore: A constitutionally recognized officer of the Senate who presides over the chamber in the absence of the Vice President. The President Pro Tempore (or, "president for a time") is elected by the Senate and is, by custom, the Senator of the majority party with the longest record of continuous service.
• primary election: means an election held on a date specified in 13-1-107 to nominate candidates for offices filled at a general election. See Montana Code 13-1-101
• Process: means a writ or summons issued in the course of judicial proceedings. See Montana Code 1-1-202
• Provisional ballot: means a ballot cast by an elector whose identity or eligibility to vote has not been verified as provided by law. See Montana Code 13-1-101
• Provisionally registered elector: means an individual whose application for voter registration was accepted but whose identity or eligibility has not yet been verified as provided by law. See Montana Code 13-1-101
• Public law: A public bill or joint resolution that has passed both chambers and been enacted into law. Public laws have general applicability nationwide.
• Remainder: An interest in property that takes effect in the future at a specified time or after the occurrence of some event, such as the death of a life tenant.
• Secrecy envelope: means an envelope used to contain the elector's ballot and that is designed to conceal the elector's ballot and to prevent that elector's ballot from being distinguished from the ballots of other electors. See Montana Code 13-19-102
• Several: means two or more. See Montana Code 1-1-201
• Signature envelope: means an envelope that contains a secrecy envelope and ballot and that is designed to:

  (a)allow election officials, upon examination of the outside of the envelope, to determine that the ballot is being submitted by someone who is in fact a qualified elector and who has not already voted; and

  (b)allow it to be used in the United States mail. See Montana Code 13-1-101

• Special election: means an election held on a day other than the day specified for a primary election, general election, or regular school election. See Montana Code 13-1-101
• State: means a state of the United States, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, the United States Virgin Islands, or any territory or insular possession subject to the jurisdiction of the United States. See Montana Code 13-21-102
• 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
• Statute: A law passed by a legislature.
• Subpoena: A command to a witness to appear and give testimony.
• system: means any machine, device, technology, or equipment used to automatically record, tabulate, or process the vote of an elector cast on a paper ballot. See Montana Code 13-1-101
• Testimony: Evidence presented orally by witnesses during trials or before grand juries.
• Uniformed service: means :

  (a)active and reserve components of the army, marine corps, navy, air force, space force, or coast guard of the United States;

  (b)the merchant marine, the commissioned corps of the public health service, or the commissioned corps of the national oceanic and atmospheric administration of the United States; or

  (c)the national guard and state militia. See Montana Code 13-21-102

• Uniformed-service voter: means an individual who is qualified to vote and is:

  (a)a member of the active or reserve components of the army, marine corps, navy, air force, space force, or coast guard of the United States who is on active duty;

  (b)a member of the merchant marine, the commissioned corps of the public health service, or the commissioned corps of the national oceanic and atmospheric administration of the United States;

  (c)a member of the national guard or state militia in activated status; or

  (d)a spouse or dependent of a member referred to in this subsection (10). See Montana Code 13-21-102

• United States: includes the District of Columbia and the territories. See Montana Code 1-1-201
• Vice president: means vice president of the United States. See Montana Code 13-25-302
• Voted ballot: means a ballot that is:

  (a)deposited in the ballot box at a polling place;

  (b)received at the election administrator's office; or

  (c)returned to a place of deposit. See Montana Code 13-1-101

• Voter registration application: means the form approved by the secretary of state that an elector may use to register to vote in Montana. See Montana Code 13-21-102
• Writing: includes printing. See Montana Code 1-1-203