Allegations of voter fraud prompted a judge to order the opening of sealed election records.

Missoula resident Patty Lovaas said she believes the county mishandled the mill levy elections held in May, and took the election office to court and demanded access to sealed ballot envelopes so she could analyze the signatures and do her own count.

She says it's important for the county to be held accountable, but says she'll be the first person to admit it if she doesn't find anything.

"If there were no problems, I would say your system is working,” said Lovaas. “But based on all the anomalies, in every different area, I would say there's a lot of need for improvement to protect the integrity of the vote."

Missoula County Elections Administrator Vickie Zeier said she strongly deny any wrong doing. She said there are too many security layers in place for someone to hijack an election, and that when mistakes are made, the public is notified and they are fixed before the final results are released.

"It would be extremely difficult to have voter fraud and not know it,” said Zeier. “If you do have voter fraud, then it is my responsibility to make sure that the citizens of this county, and the media, and the local officials know."

Zeier said the judge presiding over the lawsuit will soon decide whether Lovaas has a case, and if it will go to trial.