Two organizations formed separately to preserve Montana’s nonpartisan judicial elections have teamed up to sue the state attorney general’s office, contending it is improperly inserting political opposition into the ballot initiative process.

The case is the latest in a growing series of political fights on ballot initiatives, this time over the extent of the Montana attorney general’s influence over ballot language as part of his role in the review process. The underlying subject — politics in the courts — has been a recurring political debate in recent years in Montana, even fueling fiery dissents between justices in an order issued earlier this year.

In a petition submitted to the high court, Montanans for Fair and Impartial Judges (MFIJ) and Montanans for Nonpartisan Courts (MNC) all

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