Measure 1 abortion impact

By Jeff Beach | Deputy editor

By Jack Dura

Some supporters of a ballot measure to require at least 60% voter support to change North Dakota’s constitution say the move would help block a potential abortion rights initiative in the future.

Opponents say the measure would make it harder to pass any constitutional amendment, giving more power to a minority of voters.

North Dakota Right to Life and figures such as North Dakota’s Catholic bishops are among those urging “yes” votes on Measure 1. State Sen. Janne Myrdal, an anti-abortion leader in the Legislature, said she expects the Washington, D.C.-based Fairness Project or another out-of-state group will support a ballot initiative to add abortion rights to North Dakota’s constitution in 2028. 

By Jeff Beach

The chair of the North Dakota Public Service Commission on Friday expressed concerns that a large battery storage project in Cass County would have to rely on Casselton for fire protection without Casselton having any say in the project’s approval. 

The project is called Harmony Storage and would sit next to a solar farm that is under construction in Harmony Township, east of Casselton. Both projects are led by Minnesota-based Geronimo Power.

The solar farm and battery storage and a proposed data center would be a part of what Geronimo calls Harmony Energy Park near the Bison Substation east of Casselton and north of Mapleton. 

State officials are curtailing some hunting in southern North Dakota because of a disease  outbreak. North Dakota Monitor reporter Jack Dura joins host Craig Blumenshine to explain what hunters need to know.

Also this week, lawmakers began discussing possible legislation to address data center development that focuses on electricity costs, water use and what happens when a facility is no longer operating. Reporter Jacob Orledge describes the proposal and where lawmakers might have differing views.

A Closer Look with the Monitor is a partnership with Prairie Public's Main Street.

By Jack Dura

Gov. Kelly Armstrong on Monday announced the state is shutting down white-tailed doe hunting this fall in parts of southern North Dakota due to an ongoing disease outbreak, weeks before the state’s popular deer gun season opens.

Armstrong said the “conservative harvest strategy” is meant to help the deer population bounce back from epizootic hemorrhagic disease, or EHD, which has hit white-tails particularly hard in recent years.

By Jacob Orledge

A lawmaker from North Dakota’s coal country is working on proposed legislation to regulate some of the more controversial aspects of data centers in the state. 

Rep. Anna Novak, R-Hazen, briefed some of her legislative colleagues Tuesday on the framework of her bill. It focuses on three aspects: the cost of electricity, water use and requirements for when a facility is decommissioned. 

“Those are the major concerns of the North Dakota citizens,” Novak said. “The locals certainly have their responsibility on things. But when it comes to those three things, they’re looking for help from the state, and that’s very reasonable.”

By Michael Achterling

North Dakota’s new State Lab officially opened Tuesday with public health and environmental quality officials praising the enhanced safety equipment and testing capabilities.

Construction began in April 2024 on the $70 million federally funded facility under then-Gov. Doug Burgum, who said at the time the new lab would be the first new building on the Bismarck Capitol grounds in 43 years.

The new lab will house about 50 staff of the Department of Health and Human Services and Department of Environmental Quality with room to expand if needed. 

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. 

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.

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.

By Jack Dura

North Dakota voters will decide this fall whether to require at least 60% approval of future amendments to the state constitution, a move supporters say would protect the foundational document, but opponents say would make it harder for citizens to enact changes.

Measure 1 opponent Dustin Gawrylow, director of the North Dakota Watchdog Network, debated proponent James Kerian, a Grafton businessman chosen by StrongND, a group backing the measure, on the Plain Talk Podcast hosted by Rob Port and Chad Oban. North Dakota’s Republican-led Legislature put Measure 1 on the ballot.

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.

The coalition hosted an event in Fargo on Tuesday to make their case against the measure, which they said changes a fundamental aspect of North Dakota’s political system.

“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. 

By Jack Dura

North Dakota voters will decide this fall whether to approve free school meals for K-12 students in a ballot measure proponents see as a way to ease costs for families while opponents view it as a wrong addition to the state constitution.

Measure 2 would provide free breakfast and lunch for North Dakota’s roughly 125,000 K-12 students, costing as much as $134 million every two years. Supporter Zac Ista, the Democratic House minority leader from Grand Forks, and opponent Bob Harms, a former state GOP chair and legal adviser to two past governors, debated the measure on the Plain Talk Podcast hosted by Rob Port and Chad Oban. 

By Jeff Beach

A challenger for a seat on the Public Service Commission says North Dakotans do not feel like they are being heard by state regulators, while the incumbent defended the processes used by the state agency.

Democrat Scot Kelsh said people feel like developers of projects such as power lines and pipelines are “running roughshod” over landowners.

Republican Jill Kringstad, appointed to the commission in 2025, touted a change in state law that she advocated for as improving the public input process for the agency. The candidates participated in a Plain Talk Podcast debate Thursday.

By Jack Dura

Early in-person voting begins in certain counties throughout North Dakota during the next week, an opportunity one Bismarck-area group is highlighting to encourage Indigenous people to vote.

Staff of the Sacred Pipe Resource Center gathered Thursday with half a dozen voters to all cast their ballots shortly after polls opened for the first day of Burleigh County’s early vote. They donned matching black T-shirts reading “Democracy is Indigenous,” took pictures together and walked inside the Bismarck Event Center to vote.

Voting can be confusing or intimidating and it’s helpful to have support, said Daniela Aki, the center’s director of civic engagement.

By Jeff Beach and Michael Achterling

Hundreds rallied across North Dakota on Saturday to encourage early voting in the Nov. 3 election, joining similar No Kings events across the country.

Fargo and Bismarck rallies, each with a few hundred attendees, featured tables with information about how and when people can vote. 

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