HELENA — Well before 8 a.m. Tuesday, there were already eight people in line outside the Montana Secretary of State’s Office, waiting for the moment they could sign up to get their names on the state’s 2026 ballot.
At 8:00, Secretary of State Christi Jacobsen opened the office doors, as the state’s candidate filing period officially got underway.
While candidates have already been announcing they’re running for office, raising and spending money and talking to voters, they don’t actually have a place on the ballot until they take the step of registering, confirming they meet the qualifications and paying a filing fee.
(Watch the video to see more from the first day of candidate filing.)
Candidates can file online – and the majority did – but many chose to come to the Secretary of State’s Office to file in person. In all, about 150 candidates registered Tuesday, and about 40 of those did so at the Capitol. Staff in the Secretary of State’s office told MTN it’s one of the busier first days of filing they can remember.
In 2024, 108 candidates filed on the first day, and 26 of those were in person.
The first in line to file at the Capitol was Tia Nelson, a Democratic candidate running for House District 84 in the Helena Valley. The first to file online was Republican U.S. Sen. Steve Daines, as he officially kicked off his campaign for a third term.
In addition to Daines’ Senate seat, Montanans will also be voting on:
- The state’s western and eastern U.S. House seats
- An open associate justice position on the Montana Supreme Court
- Two seats, representing Districts 1 and 5, on the Montana Public Service Commission
- 10 state district court judges across Montana
- 25 out of 50 state senators
- All 100 state representatives
In the western congressional district, two Democratic candidates filed in person: Matt Rains, a rancher from Simms, and Ryan Busse, an author and activist from Kalispell. Russ Cleveland, a former child care business owner from St. Regis, filed from his phone on the campaign trail.
Great Falls farrier Sam Lux and Helena attorney Brian Miller, the two Democratic candidates in the eastern congressional district, also filed at the Secretary of State’s office.
Incumbent Public Service Commissioner Annie Bukacek, a Republican from Kalispell, filed in person for another term representing District 5. In addition, David Sanders, a former PSC executive director, filed in person to challenge Bukacek in the Republican primary.
PSC Commissioner Randy Pinocci, a Republican from Sun River, is termed out of the commission – but he was at the Capitol anyway to file as a candidate for Montana Senate District 12. Jeff Pattison, a Republican from Glasgow, filed online for Pinocci’s District 1 PSC seat.
In previous election cycles, this candidate filing period would have extended over two full months. But during the last legislative session, lawmakers passed a bill that condenses it down to just over two weeks.
Candidate filing will close at 5 p.m. on March 4, making that the last moment for anyone thinking about running for office this year to either get in or get out.
