Broadwater County Clerk & Recorder
Author: Angie Paulsen, BROADWATER COUNTY CLERK & RECORDER, Elections Administrator, County Surveyor,
Broadwater County Clerk & Recorder
Angie Paulsen
Broadwater County Clerk & Recorder, Elections Administrator, County Surveyor
After the 2024 Federal General Election, Broadwater County Clerk and Recorder’s Office simultaneously began preparing for the May 6, 2025, election which will include a vote for Townsend School District No. 1 School Board Trustee and Broadwater County Sheriff’s Office Public Safety Mill Levy.
With an increase of 1,128 voters from the previous Presidential Election, Broadwater County’s Election Office maintains over 6,000 registered voters. Clerk & Recorder and Election Administrator Angie Paulsen stated, “Thank you, Broadwater County, for your unwavering diligence in caring about the elections process, updating your voter registrations, and staying in contact with my office to make sure the democratic process is actualized through a high rate of voter participation. My goal is to be transparent in conducting elections while maintaining efficiency and accuracy. I am proud to say Broadwater County was one of the first counties in the state to upload 2024 Presidential Election results due to my amazing staff, election judges and an overall resounding positivity from Broadwater County voters.”
In addition to Clerk & Recorder, Election Administrator and County Surveyor duties, Paulsen serves on the Montana Clerk and Recorder Association’s (“MACR”) Executive Board, comprised of all 56 counties, and serves on the MACR Board of Directors, MACR Legislative Committee and is MACR’s Public Relations and Elections Outreach Chair.
MONTANA ELECTION LEGISLATION
Paulsen closely tracks legislation that could affect her office, particularly the hundreds of election bills proposed this session. On Saturday, March 1, 2025, Paulsen testified during a Senate Committee meeting regarding Senate Bill 490 (SB490), which would shift the late voter registration time during federal elections from 8 am-noon Monday, the day before the election, to 8 am-5 pm on Saturday. This legislation would still leave voters the option to register on election day from 8 a.m. to noon.
By shifting the voter registration times, the goal is to eliminate long wait times on election day and additionally help with the chaos that ensues the Monday before elections for Election Administrators, election judges and voters, as Monday’s deadlines cannot be done before Monday. The Monday before election day is the day Paulsen’s office prints lengthy voter registers for each polling place, preps election machines, disburses supplies to polling locations, coordinates with over 50 county elected officials, department heads, and election judges.
In her Senate Committee testimony, she noted only getting 3-4 hours of sleep the night before a federal election, due to the workload on Monday, and then she works a 24-hour shift election day. Thus, Paulsen believes SB490 will help mitigate election day lines, aid in proficiency for her staff and election judges, diminish provisional ballot issues, and hopefully gain more hours of sleep before the biggest election day of the year.
Another key piece of legislation that would affect voters is House Bill 719 (HB719), which will add the voter’s date of birth to an absentee elector’s signature affirmation envelope; an added measure to enhance voter verification procedures for absentee ballots.
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PhotoCredit: Photo Provided by Angie Paulsen
Image 1 Caption: Angie Paulsen
Image 2 Caption: Angie Paulsen, Broadwater County Clerk and Recorder, testifying during the Montana State Senate Administration Committee meeting Saturday, March 1, 2025, at the State Capitol
Photo Provided by Angie Paulsen
