{"id":2424651,"date":"2025-04-17T12:01:01","date_gmt":"2025-04-17T16:01:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/north-dakota-becomes-15th-state-to-ban-ranked-choice-voting\/"},"modified":"2025-04-17T12:01:57","modified_gmt":"2025-04-17T16:01:57","slug":"north-dakota-becomes-15th-state-to-ban-ranked-choice-voting","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/north-dakota-becomes-15th-state-to-ban-ranked-choice-voting\/","title":{"rendered":"North Dakota Becomes 15th State To Ban Ranked-Choice Voting"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"&quot;\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">18<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fnorth-dakota-becomes-15th-state-to-ban-ranked-choice-voting%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2424651&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>North Dakota has officially become the 15th state to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/ohio-republican-introduces-bill-to-ban-ranked-choice-voting-in-statewide-elections\/\" title=\"Ohio Republican proposes bill to prohibit ... in ...wide ....\">prohibit <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/andrew-yang-has-commanding-lead-in-nyc-mayoral-race-poll-shows\/\" title=\"Andrew Yang Has Commanding Lead In NYC Mayoral Race, Poll Shows\">ranked-choice voting<\/a><\/a> (RCV) in elections following the signing of legislation by Republican Gov. Kelly Armstrong. The law, known as HB 1297, mandates that no elections for local, state, or federal offices can utilize RCV or approval voting. The governor emphasized the importance of maintaining a clear and consistent voting experience to uphold trust in the electoral system. The RCV system, which involves voters ranking candidates and reallocating votes until a majority winner is determined, has faced criticism, especially from Republicans, who argue that it can led to inaccurate results and disenfranchised voters. the prohibition is part of a broader trend, with other states such as Wyoming, West Virginia, and Kansas also enacting similar bans this year. Prior attempts to outlaw RCV in North Dakota had failed due to gubernatorial vetoes, but this latest legislation succeeded despite previous setbacks in the legislature.  <\/p>\n<p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><\/p>\n<div class=\"article-body body-md bdr-top-black pt-30\">\n<div class=\"row justify-content-center\">\n<div class=\"col-12\">\n<figure class=\"article-thumbnail mb-30 mb-sm-60\">\n<div class=\"article-thumbnail-caption d-flex align-items-center justify-content-md-end label-xs mt-15\">         <i class=\"mdi mdi-camera me-10\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><\/i>         <span class=\"visually-hidden\">Image Credit<\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/commons.wikimedia.org\/wiki\/File:ND210_West_-_Welcome_to_North_Dakota_Sign_(42678037784).jpg\">formulaone from Huntsville, United States\/Wikimedia Commons\/<\/a><a href=\"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by-sa\/2.0\/deed.en\">CC BY-SA 2.0<\/a>       <\/div>\n<\/figure><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"article-share text-center article-share-simple\">\n<h5 class=\"label-sm mb-10\">Share<\/h5>\n<ul class=\"article-share-list list-unstyled m-0 p-0\">\n<li class=\"article-share-facebook m-0\">       <a href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer\/sharer.php?u=https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2025\/04\/17\/north-dakota-becomes-15th-state-to-prohibit-ranked-choice-voting-in-elections\/\" target=\"_blank\">         <i class=\"mdi mdi-facebook\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><\/i>         <span class=\"visually-hidden\">Share Article on Facebook<\/span>       <\/a>     <\/li>\n<li class=\"article-share-twitter m-0\">       <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=North%20Dakota%20Becomes%2015th%20State%20To%20Prohibit%20Ranked-Choice%20Voting%20In%20Elections&amp;url=https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2025\/04\/17\/north-dakota-becomes-15th-state-to-prohibit-ranked-choice-voting-in-elections\/\" target=\"_blank\">         <i class=\"mdi mdi-twitter\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><\/i>         <span class=\"visually-hidden\">Share Article on Twitter<\/span>       <\/a>     <\/li>\n<li class=\"article-share-truth-social m-0\">       <a href=\"https:\/\/truthsocial.com\/share?title=North%20Dakota%20Becomes%2015th%20State%20To%20Prohibit%20Ranked-Choice%20Voting%20In%20Elections&amp;url=https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2025\/04\/17\/north-dakota-becomes-15th-state-to-prohibit-ranked-choice-voting-in-elections\/\" target=\"_blank\">         <svg xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" fill=\"currentColor\" style=\"width:36px;height:auto;\" viewbox=\"0 0 92 93\"><path d=\"M69.444 55.716H56.772v10.37h12.672zM64.487 37.795V27.32H38.666v38.664h13.18v-28.19zM21.05 27.321h12.653v10.471H21.051z\" https:><\/path><\/svg>         <span class=\"visually-hidden\">Share Article on Truth Social<\/span>       <\/a>     <\/li>\n<li class=\"article-share-link m-0\">       <button data-clipboard-text=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2025\/04\/17\/north-dakota-becomes-15th-state-to-prohibit-ranked-choice-voting-in-elections\/\" data-tooltip-content=\"Copied!\" class=\"clip tooltip\">         <i class=\"mdi mdi-link-variant\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><\/i>         <span class=\"visually-hidden\">Copy Article Link<\/span>       <\/button>     <\/li>\n<li class=\"article-share-email m-0\">       <a href=\"mailto:?subject=North%20Dakota%20Becomes%2015th%20State%20To%20Prohibit%20Ranked-Choice%20Voting%20In%20Elections&amp;body=%20https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2025\/04\/17\/north-dakota-becomes-15th-state-to-prohibit-ranked-choice-voting-in-elections\/\" target=\"_blank\">         <i class=\"mdi mdi-email\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><\/i>         <span class=\"visually-hidden\">Share Article via Email<\/span>       <\/a>     <\/li>\n<li class=\"article-share-email m-0\"><span class=\"printfriendly pf-button  pf-alignleft\"><a target=\"_blank\" href=\"http:\/\/thefederalist.com\/#\" rel=\"nofollow\" onclick=\"window.print(); return false;\" title=\"Printer Friendly, PDF &amp; Email\"><span id=\"printfriendly-text2\" class=\"pf-button-text\"><i class=\"mdi mdi-printer\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><\/i><\/span><\/a><\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul><\/div>\n<p>Republican Gov. Kelly Armstrong signed legislation on Wednesday prohibiting the use of ranked-choice voting (RCV) in North Dakota elections, making it the <a href=\"https:\/\/ballotpedia.org\/Ranked-choice_voting_(RCV)\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">15th state<\/a> to do so. <\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;Now more than ever, we need a consistent, efficient and easy-to-understand voter experience across our entire state to maintain trust in our election system,&rdquo; Armstrong said in a statement. &ldquo;This is one more in a series of proactive, common-sense steps our Secretary of State and Legislature have taken to support election integrity.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<div class=\"fdrlst__b89e9-paragraph-2 d-flex justify-content-center\" style=\"margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center; \" id=\"fdrlst__b89e9-1360503607\">\n<div id=\"div-gpt-ad-1463670073398-0\" class=\"mb-30\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/ndlegis.gov\/assembly\/69-2025\/regular\/bill-actions\/ba1297.html?bill_year=2025&amp;bill_number=1297\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">HB 1297<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/ndlegis.gov\/assembly\/69-2025\/regular\/documents\/25-0495-03000.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">stipulates<\/a> that &ldquo;[a]pproval voting or ranked-choice voting may not be used in an election held within [North Dakota] to elect or nominate a candidate to any local, state, or federal elective office.&rdquo; Any existing &ldquo;ordinance enacted or adopted&rdquo; by North Dakota localities that &ldquo;conflict&rdquo; with this prohibition is now considered &ldquo;void&rdquo; under the new law. <\/p>\n<p>Under <a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/ranked-choice-voting\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">RCV<\/a>, voters rank candidates in order of preference. If no candidate receives more than 50 percent of first-choice votes in the first round of voting, the last-place finisher is eliminated, and his votes are reallocated to the voter&rsquo;s second-choice candidate. This process continues until one candidate receives a majority of votes.<\/p>\n<p>Meanwhile, approval voting is a system in which &ldquo;voters may vote for any number of candidates they choose,&rdquo; with the candidate &ldquo;receiving the most votes&rdquo; being the declared the winner, according to <a href=\"https:\/\/ballotpedia.org\/Approval_voting\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Ballotpedia<\/a>. Until HB 1297&rsquo;s enaction, the system was used in the city of Fargo. <\/p>\n<p>As The Federalist previously <a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2023\/10\/31\/ranked-choice-voting-is-the-monster-under-the-bed-of-american-elections\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">reported<\/a>, Democrats have often been RCV&rsquo;s primary backers, with the system producing Democrat wins in races in which Republican candidates received the majority vote. The controversial system has furthermore generated&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2023\/03\/17\/minnesota-could-be-third-state-to-adopt-ranked-choice-voting-following-alaska-and-maine\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">inaccurate election results<\/a>&nbsp;and high rates of&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2024\/03\/06\/watch-how-ranked-choice-voting-complicates-elections-and-disenfranchises-voters\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">discarded ballots<\/a> in elections in which it&rsquo;s been used.<\/p>\n<p>North Dakota&rsquo;s GOP-controlled legislature previously passed a bill attempting to prohibit RCV in elections in 2023. The measure was ultimately <a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2023\/04\/08\/north-dakota-republicans-must-override-gov-burgums-veto-of-ranked-choice-voting-ban-election-integrity-group-says\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">vetoed<\/a> by then-Gov. and now-Interior Secretary Doug Burgum, who claimed the legislation &ldquo;undermines local control of <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/north-dakota-republicans-must-override-gov-burgums-veto-of-ranked-choice-voting-ban-election-integrity-group-says\/\" title=\"... Republicans Must Override Gov. Burgum\u2019s Veto Of ... Ban, Election Integrity Group Says\">local political subdivisions exercising<\/a> their granted powers&rdquo; under state law. <\/p>\n<p>While the state House successfully overrode Burgum&rsquo;s veto, the motion <a href=\"https:\/\/stoprcv.com\/research\/north-dakota-senate-fails-to-override-governors-veto-of-ranked-choice-voting-ban\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">failed<\/a> in the Senate, leading to the bill&rsquo;s defeat. <\/p>\n<p>With HB 1297&rsquo;s passage into law, North Dakota joins <a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2025\/03\/19\/west-virginia-wyoming-secure-elections-with-ranked-choice-voting-prohibitions\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Wyoming, West Virginia<\/a>, and <a href=\"https:\/\/electiontransparency.org\/2025\/04\/08\/kansas-bans-ranked-choice-voting-scheme\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Kansas<\/a> in barring RCV in elections this year. Other states poised to potentially follow suit include <a href=\"https:\/\/arkleg.state.ar.us\/Bills\/Detail?id=HB1706&amp;ddBienniumSession=2025%2F2025R\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Arkansas<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/legiscan.com\/IA\/bill\/HF954\/2025\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Iowa<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.billtrack50.com\/billdetail\/1808794\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Ohio<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.billtrack50.com\/billdetail\/1757166\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">South Carolina<\/a>, and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.billtrack50.com\/billdetail\/1751192\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Texas<\/a>. <\/p>\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator\">\n<div class=\"article-author-description fst-italic\">      Shawn Fleetwood is a staff writer for The Federalist and a graduate of the University of Mary Washington. He previously served as a state content writer for Convention of States Action and his work has been featured in numerous outlets, including RealClearPolitics, RealClearHealth, and Conservative Review. Follow him on Twitter @ShawnFleetwood<\/div>\n<div class=\"article-author mt-30 mt-sm-60 pt-30 bdr-top-bold-black\">\n<div class=\"row g-0 align-items-center\">\n<div class=\"col-12 col-md-6\">\n<div class=\"article-author-profile d-flex align-items-center justify-content-center justify-content-md-start\">\n<div class=\"article-author-details\">\n<div class=\"label-md\">Shawn Fleetwood<\/div>\n<div class=\"article-author-twitter label-sm d-flex align-items-center mt-10\">             <i class=\"mdi mdi-twitter me-5\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><\/i>             <span class=\"visually-hidden\">Visit on Twitter<\/span>            <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/ShawnFleetwood\" target=\"_blank\" class=\"text-decoration-none\">@ShawnFleetwood<\/a>           <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"col-12 col-md-6 d-flex justify-content-center justify-content-md-end mt-15 mt-md-0\">        <a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/author\/shawnfleetwood\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">More Articles<\/a>     <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"article-tags bdr-top-black mt-30 mt-sm-60 pt-15 pt-md-45\">\n<ul class=\"list-unstyled d-flex flex-wrap align-items-center mb-0 mx-n10 p-0\">\n<li class=\"mt-10 mx-10\"><a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/delayed-election-results\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">delayed election results<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"mt-10 mx-10\"><a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/doug-burgum\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">Doug Burgum<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"mt-10 mx-10\"><a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/election-integrity\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">election integrity<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"mt-10 mx-10\"><a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/elections\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">Elections<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"mt-10 mx-10\"><a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/kelly-armstrong\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">Kelly Armstrong<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"mt-10 mx-10\"><a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/north-dakota\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">North Dakota<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"mt-10 mx-10\"><a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/ranked-choice-voting\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">ranked-choice voting<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"mt-10 mx-10\"><a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/rigged-choice-voting\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">rigged-choice voting<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Republican Gov. Kelly Armstrong signed a law banning ranked-choice voting in North Dakota, making it the 15th state to do so<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":539,"featured_media":2424652,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/North-Dakota.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[33651],"tags":[53641,33499,36265,38108,46636],"class_list":["post-2424651","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-the-western-journal","tag-electoral-systems","tag-north-dakota","tag-ranked-choice-voting","tag-state-legislation","tag-voting-reform"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/North-Dakota.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2424651","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/539"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2424651"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2424651\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2424656,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2424651\/revisions\/2424656"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2424652"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2424651"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2424651"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2424651"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}