(The Center Square) – Nearly 61% of North Dakota voters said 81 is too old to serve in Congress.
Tuesday’s vote on the ballot measure saw 68,010 voters saying yes to the age limit and 43,699 voting against it, according to election results from the North Dakota Secretary of State’s office.
Secretary of State Michael Howe told lawmakers in April that he expects legal challenges to the measure. The costs of the legal challenge are hard to estimate, but lawmakers were told they could be up to $1 million.
The rule is effective immediately. It comes at a time when multiple political figures across the U.S., including the sitting president, are in their eighties. President Joe Biden is 81 years old. Former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi of California is 84. Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky is 82. If elected, former President Donald Trump would be 78 when he took office and 82 when his term ended.
U.S. Rep. Kelly Armstrong is heading to a November contest for the governor’s office against Democratic state Sen. Merrill Piepkorn.
Public Service Commissioner Julie Fedorchak staved off four challengers for the Republican nomination for Armstrong’s congressional seat, the only one held by the state. Fedorchak garnered nearly 46% of the vote. Her nearest challenger, Rick Becker, received 29.57%, followed by Cara Mund at 19.53%, Alexander C. Balazs at 4%, and Sharlet Mohr at 0.85%, according to election results.
Fedorchak will face Democrat Trygve Hammer in November. Hammer defeated Roland Clifford Riemers with 73.34% of the vote to Reimers’ 26.26%.
Just over 20%, or 119,542 of North Dakota’s 594,140 registered voters, turned out for the primary election.