North Dakota Republican resolution seeks to put nominating power with party

BISMARCK, N.D. (North Dakota Monitor) — North Dakota Republican delegates gathering in Minot this weekend are expected to vote on a resolution pushing for changes to the state’s primary system as statewide incumbents skip the endorsing convention.

The resolution calls for partisan primaries to be eliminated in North Dakota and urges Republican leaders to make that a priority for legislation in 2027.

In North Dakota, candidates can either submit a certificate of endorsement from a political party or gather signatures to appear on the ballot.

The resolution states the NDGOP has been deprived of “any meaningful ability to control who may seek or obtain” a Republican nomination.

Sen. Kent Weston, R-Sarles, co-chair of the NDGOP Resolutions Committee, said the resolution does not seek to prevent any candidate from running for office. But if the proposal is supported by lawmakers and becomes law, it wouldn’t allow candidates to have an “R” next to their name on the ballot without endorsement from the party.

This year, all of North Dakota’s Republican statewide incumbents declined to seek the NDGOP endorsement, with some citing dissatisfaction over how the 2024 convention was handled. Instead, the statewide officials and many incumbent lawmakers are gathering signatures to appear on the state’s primary ballot as Republicans. Members of the state Republican Party called the act “shameful” during a March 10 press conference.

“The party is being ripped apart and very divided and some are picking up their toys and not wanting to play,” Weston said. “That’s not healthy.”

Resolutions are scheduled for a vote on Sunday during the NDGOP state convention.

During an interview in January at the start of the Republican district endorsing conventions, North Dakota Republican Party Chair Matt Simon said the party favors endorsing conventions over ballot petition signatures for candidates.

“The organization (NDGOP) itself is just a collection of people that share values and we should have a right as a private organization to nominate our candidates,” Simon said.

Meanwhile, Rep. Mike Nathe, a Bismarck Republican who attempted to eliminate the state party endorsement process through a bill last session, said he’s being encouraged by colleagues to introduce his bill again in 2027. Proponents say they’d rather see the nomination decided by voters in the entire district than a small group of party insiders, Nathe said.

“All they’re doing is just building a case to pass that bill next session,” Nathe said.

Geoff Simon, vice chair of NDGOP District 30, said the NDGOP leadership “needs to come to terms” with the division within the state’s supermajority political party.

In 2024, the state party endorsed candidates for U.S. House and superintendent of public instruction who went on to lose by large margins in the June primary.

“There’s a widely held perception that the State Committee doesn’t represent the majority of Republican voters in the state, and that’s just what’s happening right now,” Simon said.

This year, candidate Alex Balazs is the only Republican seeking the party’s endorsement for U.S. House, while incumbent Rep. Julie Fedorchak is gathering signatures to appear on the June ballot with President Donald Trump endorsing Fedorchak’s reelection bid. In January, Kate Roberts, a spokesperson for the Fedorchak campaign, said North Dakotans “expect the state party” to stand with Trump’s endorsed candidate.

The only other statewide candidate seeking a party endorsement is Deven Styczynski who is running for a six-year term on the Public Service Commission against incumbent Sheri Haugen-Hoffart, who has said she’s not attending the convention.

Rules adopted by the party ahead of the convention would prevent floor nominations for other state offices, though it’s possible delegates could vote to suspend the rules. The other state offices up for election this year are attorney general, secretary of state, agriculture commissioner, tax commissioner, superintendent of public instruction and a two-year term on the Public Service Commission.

North Dakota Monitor reporter Michael Achterling can be reached at machterling@northdakotamonitor.com.

North Dakota Monitor editor Amy Dalrymple contributed to this report.