By Amy Dalrymple | Editor
North Dakota Citizens Alliance Executive Director and law student Brandon Prichard, at left of center, speaks during oral arguments in front of the North Dakota Supreme Court via videoconference on Oct. 21, 2026. (Photo screenshot via North Dakota Supreme Court YouTube page)
By Jack Dura
Justices of North Dakota’s Supreme Court appeared skeptical during arguments Wednesday over why they should overturn the will of the voters in a case that asks them to basically void the election results if any of four challenged Republican House nominees is elected this fall.
Three Republican officials are asking the court to declare the seats vacant and order them filled by appointment, a process that would favor the challengers. Two of them lost their primaries to three of the candidates they allege are ineligible due to primary petition errors they said Secretary of State Michael Howe’s office wrongly allowed to be corrected without the original signers’ consent.
The justices asked Citizens Alliance of North Dakota Executive Director and law student Brandon Prichard about the timing of the court case so close to the general election and what basis the court has to do what the challengers ask.
“There’s nothing in the North Dakota Constitution, North Dakota statutes or North Dakota decisional law that authorizes this extraordinary remedy that the petitioners are seeking,” Justice Mark Friese said.
From the left, Democratic-NPL attorney general candidate Tim Lamb and Republican Attorney General Drew Wrigley. (Photos by Kyle Martin/For the North Dakota Monitor)
By Jack Dura
Candidates for North Dakota’s top law enforcement position say artificial intelligence will be transformative for society but is not a replacement for humans in investigations or legal matters.
Republican Attorney General Drew Wrigley, a two-time former U.S. attorney and past lieutenant governor, is running for reelection in a rematch against Democrat Tim Lamb, a Grand Forks attorney, former school board member and retired Army major.
Wrigley said he doesn’t “impulsively lurch for more regulation of things,” and prefers to have “candid, expert-driven, societally sensitive conversations about this emerging technology.”
If elected, Lamb said he would task an assistant attorney general to become an expert on AI topics. He also said he would work with other state attorneys general to develop oversight of AI and would prioritize consumer protection against AI fraud.
A site rendering shows the proposed North American Iron pig iron plant planned for northeast of Minot. (Courtesy of North American Iron)
By Jeff Beach
The North Dakota Department of Environmental Quality has opened a public comment period on a new heavy industry proposed northeast of Minot.
North American Iron is proposing to transport mine waste from Minnesota to Minot where it can be refined into small iron pellets known as pig iron, which then can be used to make steel.
The department says its preliminary evaluations show that the pig iron plant will comply with air pollution rules and air quality will not be harmed.
The department also has scheduled a public hearing for 5:30 p.m. Dec. 2 at Minot City Hall. If the department does not receive a formal request for a public hearing, or if it determines that there is not a significant public interest, the department may cancel the hearing.
Amy Jacobson, executive director of Prairie Action North Dakota, speaks to a group of University of North Dakota students about Measure 1 during an event at Railyard Offices in Fargo Oct. 20, 2026. (Ceilidh Kern/For the North Dakota Monitor)
By Ceilidh Kern
A coalition of North Dakota-based advocacy groups has formed to oppose Measure 1, which asks voters whether constitutional amendments need at least 60% of the vote to pass.
“A minority vote would be able to overrule the will and the vote of the majority,” said Amy Jacobson, executive director of Prairie Action North Dakota.
The American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network of North Dakota is opposing Measure 1. The organization argues the measure would make it harder to advance public health protections, citing a ballot measure in South Dakota to add Medicare expansion that passed with about 56% of voter support.
Proponents of Measure 1, which was placed on the ballot by the Legislature, argue it should be harder to change the state constitution.
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FROM STATES NEWSROOM
Rahul Koranne, the president of the Minnesota Hospital Association, speaks at a Capitol press conference alongside rural hospital executives Oct. 20, 2026. (Photo by Alyssa Chen/Minnesota Reformer)
By Alyssa Chen
Minnesota hospitals had a record high of over 2 million emergency department visits in 2024. That year, more than a quarter of hospitals lost money on operations.
The Minnesota Hospital Association painted a bleak picture of Minnesota healthcare Tuesday in a new report titled “A Statewide Crisis of Care.” The hospitals are gearing up for what could be a bruising budget year at the Legislature in 2027, as efforts to counteract federal Medicaid cuts will run into the state’s own long-term fiscal challenges.
At a Capitol press conference, executives of rural hospitals spoke of the federal One Big Beautiful Bill Act’s impact on what they described as already weakened hospital financials.
South Dakota specialty courts cost thousands less than incarceration, report says | South Dakota Searchlight
FROM OTHER ND MEDIA OUTLETS
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Fossilized T. rex footprints airlifted from North Dakota | The Bismarck Tribune
Grand Forks school bus ridership down after fees reintroduced | Grand Forks Herald
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