The fact though was that the government needed to follow the rules of election and not cut the deadline short for registering major party candidates, he said.

The special election puts the Libertarians in an unusual position. To keep major party status, a party must have at least one candidate in a statewide race who wins at least 5 percent of the vote. A party can miss the 5 percent mark in one cycle, but it has to hit it in the next. If it doesn’t get 5 percent for two statewide elections in a row, it no longer automatically qualifies for the ballot, meaning it must gather the signatures of several thousand registered voters for candidates in future races.

Because of the special election this spring and a general election in 2018, its possible Libertarians could be pushed from automatic ballot qualification by 2020, the year that Montana’s governor, U.S. House and one of its U.S. Senate races are in play.

Who votes Libertarian?

But don’t read too much into a sea change of election outcomes if Libertarians exited, said Craig Wilson, Montana State University political science professor emeritus.