HELENA — On Wednesday at the State Capitol, election officials ran an analysis on new election technology to see if it could be used in Montana elections. The new machines from ES&S have already been certified by the federal government, but Montana also independently verifies any new or updated technology.
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“These voting systems go through rigorous testing by the federal government, but here in Montana, we're never going to trust the federal government. We want to trust and verify ourselves,” explained Montana Elections Director Austin James. “And with Secretary Jacobson's commitment to accuracy. We want to do it out in the open.”
County officials from across Montana joined the Montana Secretary of State’s Office in conducting their analysis.
The event was open to the public for observation, and a demo machine was also available for the public to try. While the new machine was a digital interface, it printed a physical paper ballot that the voter would verify and then turn in themselves to an election administrator at a polling location.
“This is the first time that we'll be testing to compare to a hand-count, but we're going to make sure that counties retest the machine every single time there is an election,” noted James. “Also, before the county is able to purchase the machine. They'll go through another process to ensure that there's no modems that have been attached to the individual machine they're purchasing, and other cybersecurity concerns. We take the process very seriously, and you test a lot to make sure that Montanans are protected, and that's important.”
President Trump has recently called for an end to mail-in ballots. According to data from the Montana Secretary of State’s Office, more than half of Montana voters requested absentee ballots during the 2024 elections.
James said the Secretary of State’s Office is unwavering in ensuring Montana’s elections are secure and transparent for everyone.
“Montana sets the bar when it comes to election integrity,” James said. “We take our precautions in all aspects of voting very seriously. We want to make sure that all Montana voters have access to the ballot. And we also want to make sure that we have the highest level of integrity at every facet of the election.”
