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Outside audit group says Montana voter rolls show thousands of anomalous records; group asks state to review
Summary
United Sovereign Americans presented analysis claiming tens of thousands of apparent registration irregularities in Montana's voter rolls, supplied a report to the Secretary of State and asked the committee to consider a joint review; the Secretary of State and committee members acknowledged the receipt and requested follow‑up.
Marley Hornick, a founder of the volunteer group United Sovereign Americans (USA), told the Senate State Administration and Veterans Affairs Committee that her organization’s analysis of Montana’s statewide voter registration list found a large number of records that do not appear to meet statutory or federal standards and that a portion of those records were counted in certified election totals.
Hornick said USA’s review—based on state registration lists obtained under public records law and peer‑reviewed internal queries—identified what the group described as 105,137 apparent registration violations in Montana around the 2022 midterm cycle. Hornick provided category totals the group reported to the Secretary of State: 375 apparent duplicate registrations; 1,095 votes added after certification; 705 records with altered birth dates; 9,225 records with implausible ages (either older than feasible or underage); 711 registrants marked as deceased; and roughly 70,000 records that the group described as “backdated” registrations. She said the group counted 72,571 instances where a registration with one or more disqualifying indicators was allowed to vote, affecting 66,625 unique votes.
Hornick said United Sovereign Americans is a volunteer organization formed in 2023 and that its analytics are peer reviewed by experienced data and cybersecurity professionals led by Harry Howery. She said USA has delivered the underlying record lists and line‑by‑line reports to state officials and to federal law enforcement (Department of Justice and FBI) and asked the Secretary of State’s office for a line‑by‑line explanation of causes for the anomalies.
Committee members pressed Hornick on methods and provenance. Hornick said the group used SQL queries against official statewide registration lists that states provided; she said the group supplied full extracts for every claimed anomalous record and that its volunteers are credentialed professionals whose work is peer reviewed. Senator Ellis asked when USA was formed; Hornick said June 2023 and said pending lawsuits had been filed in nine states as of the presentation.
Secretary Jacobson confirmed the group obtained underlying data from the Secretary’s office and that the office had received USA’s report. Jacobson and committee members discussed how some errors could reflect clerical or procedural issues and said the office would review the reported records; Jacobson also reminded the committee that the Secretary of State’s office lacks criminal investigatory authority and that referrals should be made to the proper agencies if warranted.
Hornick offered to cooperate with Montana officials on any follow‑up review and urged legislators to consider a formal, state‑led data reconciliation. She said USA seeks state partners willing to investigate why the anomalies appear and to produce explanations that either resolve the findings or identify deeper problems.
The committee did not vote or adopt any directive during the hearing; members asked staff to accept the USA report and materials into the committee record and to coordinate with the Secretary of State’s office on any requested clarifications.
