Montana's Libertarian Party — the only third party in the state with a guaranteed general election ballot line alongside Republicans and Democrats — has a contested U.S. Senate primary this June, with Kyle Austin and Tom Jandron both vying for the nomination.

The winner of the Libertarian primary will appear on the November ballot in what is shaping up to be one of the more consequential Senate races in the country. Montana voters who pull a Libertarian primary ballot in June will choose between the two candidates; the winner advances to the general election regardless of vote share in the primary.

The Libertarian guaranteed ballot access is a structural quirk of Montana election law that gives third-party candidates here a foothold that doesn't exist in most states. In close Senate races, a Libertarian candidate drawing even a small percentage of the vote can be a decisive factor, making the June Libertarian primary more relevant to the overall race than it might appear on its surface.

Details on Austin's and Jandron's platforms and backgrounds were not immediately available. The primary is scheduled for June.