Rick Jore (born December 21, 1956) is an American politician and businessman who served as a member of the Montana House of Representatives from 1995 to 2001 and 2007 to 2009. Early life and education Jore was born and raised in Ronan, Montana and received his associate degree from North Idaho College in 1978. Career He is also the owner of Westslope Trout Company and the vice chairman of the Constitution Party of Montana. Jore spent 10 years working in a lumber mill. First elected as a Republican in 1994, Jore served three terms in the Montana House of Representatives before switching his affiliation to the Constitution Party in March 2000. Jore ran again for the legislature in 2000 and 2002 as a Constitution Party candidate and was narrowly defeated in both attempts. A very narrow defeat in 2004, after a recount, was followed by a successful run in 2006, defeating his Democratic opponent 2,045 to 1,643 votes. 2004 election In the very close 2004 election, following a recount, Jore initially tied with Democratic nominee Jeanne Windham, with each receiving 1,559 votes (Republican Jack Cross received 1,107 votes) in state House District 12. Because there was a tie, under Montana law the outgoing Republican Governor Judy Martz, was entitled to choose the winner, and she selected Jore — which gave the Republicans a 50-49 lead over Democrats in the state House, with Jore as the only Constitution Party member. The matter went to the state courts, and in December 2004, the Montana Supreme Court issued its initial ruling, finding in a 6-1 decision that "one or more" of seven contested ballots for Jore were invalid. The decision meant that Windham was elected to office, which in turn created a tie in the state House, which was evenly split (50-50) between Republicans and Democrats in the House. Because the incoming governor, Brian Schweitzer, was a Democrat, this meant that the new state House speaker would be a Democrat. The Court's written opinion was issued March 18, 2005. 2006 election In the next election, Jore had a rematch with Jeanne Windham. This time, Jore won with 55.4% of the vote. With Republicans controlling the Montana House by a slim margin of 50-49, Jore obtained an unexpected amount of political leverage and was appointed chairman of the House Education Committee. 2008 election Since Jore had already served in the Montana House as a