Bottomly v. Ford

The Honorable James F. O’Connor died on the 15th day of January 1945 while serving as the duly elected and qualified representative in the Congress of the United States from the second congressional district of the state of Montana.

The Constitution of the United States provides that, “When vacancies happen in the Representation from any State, the Executive Authority thereof shall issue Writs of Election to fill such Vacancies.” (Article I, sec. 2.)

Empowered by the above constitutional provision, the Governor of the state of Montana on March 7, 1945, issued a proclamation calling for the…