West
Montana Supreme Court ruling on Green Party candidate could spell trouble for Jon Tester, polling reveals
A new Montana ruling on a third party’s ballot presence could have negative implications for Sen. Jon Tester’s re-election efforts as he clinches on to the Democrat’s Senate majority, recent polling suggests.
In August, the Montana Democratic Party sued Secretary of State Christi Jacobsen and the state of Montana in an effort to prevent Green Party Senate candidate Robert Barb from appearing on the November ballot.
Democrats claimed in their lawsuit that Barb’s nomination was not valid, after the third-party candidate was named the Green Party’s nominee to replace their original leading candidate who dropped out of the race in August despite winning the primary.
A district court rejected the request to deny the Green Party candidate ballot access in early September, but the Montana Democratic Party submitted a writ of supervisory control to the state’s Supreme Court against the lower court ruling. Ultimately, the Montana Supreme Court ruled to uphold the lower court’s decision on Tuesday, solidifying Barb’s name on the 2024 ballot.
DEMS POUR $25M INTO GROUND GAME AS GOP INCHES CLOSER TO SENATE MAJORITY
Sen. Jon Tester, D-Mont., arrives for the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Defense hearing on the “Fiscal Year 2025 Budget Request for the National Guard and Reserves,” in the Dirksen Building on Tuesday, June 18, 2024. (Tom Williams)
“MDP has not convinced us that the District Court erred in its rulings in its September 3, 2024 Order, although we reach the same result as that court under a different analysis. Since we have not concluded that the District Court is proceeding under a mistake of law, this matter is not susceptible to writ of supervisory control,” the court wrote in its 13-page decision.
“I’m pleased that the Supreme Court unanimously rejected this Hail Mary attempt to undermine Montana election law,” Jacobsen said in a statement shared with Fox News Digital following the decision. “From the start, this lawsuit was a baseless political game from Washington elites that showed complete disrespect for Montana and our election officials.”
TOP HANDICAPPER GIVES GOP’S TIM SHEEHY EDGE AGAINST DEMOCRAT JON TESTER IN MONTANA RACE SHIFT
The effort comes just weeks after the Democratic National Committee made a similar attempt to remove Green Party candidate Jill Stein, who in 2016 received more votes than former President Donald Trump’s margin of victory in the state.
Montana Senate candidate Tim Sheehy speaks during the second day of the 2024 Republican National Convention at the Fiserv Forum in Milwaukee on July 16, 2024. (Andrew Caballero-Reynolds)
Recent polling suggests that a third party presence on the November ballot could work against Tester’s re-election aspirations.
A recent AARP survey found that Sheehy led by six percentage points in a head-to-head matchup against Tester. However, Sheehy’s lead against Tester widened to eight points in a multi-candidate field that included the state’s Green Party and Libertarian candidates.
Sen. Jon Tester is seeking re-election in Montana, a state won by former President Donald Trump in both 2016 and 2020. (Samuel Corum)
Top political handicappers recently gave Sheehy an edge in the red state race that is poised to be crucial in determining which party obtains control of the chamber next year.
The Cook Political Report, an independent nonpartisan elections’ handicapper, recently shifted the race from “toss-up” to “lean Republican,” while Sabato’s Crystal Ball at the University of Virginia’s Center for Politics moved the race to “leans Republican.”
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This year’s annual Bay to Breakers — the event that’s as much as roving costume party as a 12 kilometer run — is being held on Sunday, May 17. While participants prepare their outfits for the event, San Franciscans prepare for the road closures that accompany the event. Transit officials recommend runners and spectators alike use subways and mass transit, especially on the day of the race.
Denver, CO
Northbound I-25 closed between Denver and Colorado Springs after fatal multi-vehicle crash
SEATTLE — Public Health – Seattle & King County officials are monitoring a fourth King County resident for possible exposure to the Andes type of hantavirus linked to the MV Hondius cruise ship outbreak, health officials said Friday.
The Washington State Department of Health and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention notified local health officials on May 14 about the additional resident, according to Public Health – Seattle & King County.
RELATED | What exactly is hantavirus and how concerned should Washington residents be?
The resident did not travel on the cruise ship but was aboard a flight from Johannesburg to Amsterdam with an ill cruise ship passenger before departure.
Officials said the sick passenger was removed from the aircraft before the flight left Johannesburg and later tested positive for the virus.
The infected passenger began traveling before the outbreak was reported to the World Health Organization.
The King County resident is considered at low risk for infection because they were not seated near the ill passenger, health officials said.
The resident has returned to King County, remains asymptomatic, and is monitoring for symptoms.
Earlier this week, Public Health announced that three King County residents were under monitoring for the Andes type of hantavirus.
Two of those residents had been seated near the infected passenger on the Johannesburg-to-Amsterdam flight. Both have returned home to King County, remain symptom-free, and are monitoring for symptoms in coordination with public health officials.
A third King County resident who was a passenger aboard the MV Hondius is being monitored alongside other American passengers at the national quarantine center at the University of Nebraska Medical Center.
Officials said that the resident remains asymptomatic.
Health officials said there are currently no cases of Andes-type hantavirus in King County, and no residents are showing symptoms. The risk to the public remains low, officials said.
“We were informed yesterday of a fourth individual with a low-risk exposure and were able to reach the resident today,” Dr. Sandra J. Valenciano, health officer and acting director for Public Health – Seattle & King County, said in a statement. “All our residents are following public health protocols, and the risk to the King County community remains low.”
Valenciano said monitoring exposed individuals allows health officials to support residents while ensuring early detection and rapid public health response if symptoms develop.
Hantavirus infections are rare but can cause severe illness.
The viruses are primarily spread through contact with wild rodents and exposure to their urine, droppings, or saliva.
According to health officials, the Andes virus is the only known hantavirus capable of spreading from person to person, typically through close physical contact, prolonged exposure in enclosed spaces, or contact with body fluids from an infected person.
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