Montana Leaves Kamala Harris Off Absentee Ballot, Forced to Shut Down Voting System After Voters Complain

Montana voters using the absentee ballot reported Kamala Harris missing from their ballot, causing the state to shut down and reboot their voting system.

The Electronic Absentee System went live at 8 a.m. local time Friday for Montana voters, and election officials were notified shortly after that Harris and her running mate Tim Walz's names were missing from the ballot, according to the Montana Secretary of State's Office.

"Our team and the vendor quickly investigated and found that only a few voters may have been impacted," the Secretary of State's Office told the Daily Inter Lake. "As a precaution, the Electronic Absentee System has been taken offline until troubleshooting is completed."

Max Himsl, a Flathead County resident, and his wife are currently living and working abroad in the United Kingdom. When Himsl saw that his only voting options Friday morning were Republican Donald Trump and Independent Robert F. Kennedy Jr., he reported the problem to the Flathead County Election Department.

"I'm upset my democratic process was interrupted," he told the Daily Inter Lake. "This is very concerning to me."

The absentee voting system was up and running again by Friday afternoon, this time with all the candidates listed, as reported by the Daily Montanan.

Secretary of State Christi Jacobsen's office said in a news release Monday morning, "No, Montana did not leave a candidate off the 2024 General Election ballot." The office stated that claims that Harris' name was "removed" were false, and that "no ballots were affected."