GREAT FALLS — Cascade County law enforcement continues its investigation into fraudulent signature gathering allegedly used to get independent candidates on the ballot, and officials say they are zeroing in on a suspect in the case.
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Cascade County Sheriff Jesse Slaughter was joined by Montana Secretary of State Christi Jacobsen and Cascade County leaders Wednesday to update the public on an investigation that found fraudulent signatures had been gathered on petitions for independent U.S. Senate candidate Seth Bodnar and independent U.S. House candidate Mike Eisenhauer.
"This case was discovered by our elections office and election office employees here in Cascade County," Slaughter said.
Cascade County has filed four misdemeanor counts against Nathan Ross Harlan.
"Mr. Harlan is accused of soliciting, aiding and abetting in deceptive election practices involving forged signatures and false declarations by signature gatherers," Cascade County Attorney Josh Racki said.
Harlan, who Racki says is believed to have engaged in similar practices in North Carolina, remains at large with a $20,000 warrant out for his arrest. A driver's license that expired in 2020 listed Harlan as 5-9 and 210 pounds with brown hair and brown eyes.
Both campaigns had retained a company to help gather the signatures needed to qualify for the ballot.
"Both campaigns had retained a company called Ballot Access Marketing, LLC to help gather signatures needed to qualify for the ballot," Racki said.
In May, the county elections office noticed irregularities in a series of four petition packets, with one signature raising an immediate red flag.
"One of the signatures was the name of one of the election employee's adult daughter, who lived outside Montana. She had gotten married and moved. And so when the employee noticed her daughter, both with her maiden name and with her old Montana address on the petition, she knew something was up right away," Racki said.
Racki maintained the investigation found no wrongdoing by either candidate, and both campaigns cooperated fully with law enforcement. The ballots in question were not counted toward the candidates' requirements to qualify for the ballot.
Eisenhauer took to social media to thank authorities for their investigative work but also said the incident serves as a reminder that laws need to be changed.
"Montanans need our legislators to make dramatic and positive changes that allow for easier and more efficient access for ballots for nonpartisan candidates who are not strictly bound or controlled by the current two-party duopoly, or the hierarchical system of party bosses," Eisenhauer said.
Cascade County Elections Administrator Terry Thompson said the case could lead to future changes.
"I think there's some things that we can take from this in the future, and hopefully we can make some legislative changes in regards to how candidate petitions are handled," Thompson said.
"Montanans expect fair, secure elections, and when someone attempts to undermine that trust, they must be held accountable," Jacobsen said.
