Calling Gov. Steve Bullock’s August directive permitting counties to hold the Nov. 3 election via mail ballot illegal, President Donald Trump’s campaign and three other Republican groups sued Bullock on Wednesday seeking to overturn it.

The suit filed in U.S. District Court in Helena by Trump’s campaign, the Republican National Committee, the National Republican Senatorial Committee and the Montana Republican State Central Committee also names Montana Secretary of State Corey Stapleton, a Republican.

“The Governor’s power grab under the cover of COVID-19 is particularly egregious. The Governor is running for U.S. Senate as a member of the Democratic Party and his race is one of the most competitive in the country. So he is using his current position to force a brand-new election system on Montanans that, according to his own party, will sway the election in his favor. This action cannot stand,” reads the suit.

Bullock responded, in a statement, that "this template lawsuit appears to be part of a pattern of lawsuits across the country by Republican party operatives to limit access to voting during the pandemic. Voting by mail in Montana is safe, secure, and was requested by a bipartisan coalition of Montana election officials seeking to reduce the risk of COVID-19 and keep Montanans safe and healthy. This is the same directive that the Republican President of the Senate and Republican Speaker of the House said was the right thing to do for the June primary. Today, we have many more active cases of COVID-19 than we did back in June.”