Montana GOP lawmakers are prioritizing bills that would give them more oversight of the judicial branch. More than half a dozen advanced on Friday.

The Supreme Court has turned back an election law case out of Montana that relied on a controversial legal theory with the potential to change the way elections are run across the country.

Several Republican judicial reform bills got initial approval Thursday in the first test of the party's legislative priority, albeit with inconsistent measures of GOP support.

Senate President Matt Regier said he has “very, very serious concerns” about the contract arrangement. "The more you look at it, the deeper it's getting.”

On Thursday, the Montana House and Senate voted on seven Republican-sponsored bills that would make changes to the state’s judicial branch and legal system.

Montana Republicans, who hold a majority in the Legislature, are set to debate nearly 30 bills aimed at reforming the judiciary based on GOP concerns with the branch of government.

Montana’s House is has endorsed a ban on transgender people using bathrooms in public buildings that don’t align with their sex assigned at birth.

Montana was appealing a ruling that struck down two GOP-backed election laws. It's relying on the independent state legislature theory, which holds that state judges shouldn't be allowed to ...

The Supreme Court has turned back an election law case out of Montana that relied on a controversial legal theory with the potential to change the way elections are run across the country

Montana Secretary of State Christi Jacobsen argues that only lawmakers have sway over state elections under the U.S. Constitution. She asked the justices to consider the case after the state’s highest court struck down laws ending same-day voter registration and prohibiting paid ballot collection.

"We did kind of prioritize what could move the needle most," Senate President Matt Regier, R-Kalispell, told reporters Tuesday.

A Montana House bill would require transgender people to use public bathrooms that align with their sex assigned at birth.