North Dakota 2020 ballot measures

Elections in North Dakota, 2020

• Election date: Nov. 3
• Registration deadline(s): N/A
• Online registration: No
• Same-day registration: No
• Recount laws

• Early voting starts: Oct. 19
• Absentee/mail voting deadline(s): Nov. 2 (received)
• Processing, counting, and challenging absentee/mail-in ballots
• Voter ID: Non-photo ID
• Poll times: Open between 7 a.m. to 9 a.m.; close between 7 p.m. to 9 p.m.

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2020 North Dakota Ballot Measures
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Two statewide ballot measures were certified to appear on the ballot in North Dakota on November 3, 2020. Both were defeated.

HIGHLIGHTS

The state legislature referred two constitutional amendments to the ballot.

One measure would have changed the structure of the State Board of Higher Education.

The other measure would have required initiated constitutional amendments passed by voters to be submitted to the legislature and approved by voters at a second election if the legislature did not vote in favor of them.

A citizen initiative to establish top-four open primaries and ranked-choice voting for all statewide, legislative, and congressional general elections and to change state legislative redistricting processes was certified and later removed from the ballot by a court ruling.

Between 1996 and 2018, an average of six measures appeared on the ballot in North Dakota during even-numbered election years, 56% of which were approved.

On the ballot

Type	Title	Subject	Description	Result
LRCA	Constitutional Measure 1	Education	Increases the membership of the Board of Higher Education from eight to 15, increases term length from four years to six years, and restricts membership	d
LRCA	Constitutional Measure 2	Direct democracy measures	Requires initiated constitutional amendments passed by voters to be submitted to the legislature; if the legislature does not approve the measure, the measure would need to be placed on the ballot again, and will become effective if approved by the voters a second time	d

Removed from the ballot

The North Dakota Supreme Court ruled that the following ballot measure, which had been certified for the ballot, was invalid and enjoined the secretary of state from placing the measure on the ballot.

Type	Title	Subject	Description	Status
CICA	North Dakota Top-Four Ranked-Choice Voting, Redistricting, and Election Process Changes Initiative	Elections and redistricting	Establishes top-four ranked-choice voting (also known as instant runoff voting) for all statewide, legislative, and congressional general elections; requires legislative redistricting by the ethics commission; creates paper record and audit requirements for ballots; requires ballots to be sent to military and overseas voters at least 61 days before an election

Getting measures on the ballot

See also: Signature requirements for ballot measures in North Dakota

North Dakota allows citizen-initiated measures in the form of initiated state statutes, initiated constitutional amendments, and veto referendums. North Dakota petition signature requirements are determined by calculating 2 percent of the most recent census population of the state for veto referendums and initiated statutes, and 4 percent of the census population for initiated amendments. In North Dakota, petitioners may only circulate a petition for one year following the secretary of state's initial approval. The completed petition must be submitted at least 120 days prior to the election. Supporters had to submit 26,904 valid signatures by July 6, 2020, in order to qualify initiated constitutional amendments for the 2020 ballot, and 13,452 signatures were required to qualify initiated state statutes and veto referendums.

The North Dakota Legislature has the power to place constitutional amendments on the ballot when a majority of members in each house of the legislature approve the amendment. Once on the ballot, the amendment must be approved by a simple majority of the electors. The legislature only convenes legislative sessions during odd-numbered years. The legislature adjourned its 2019 session on April 26, 2019.

Referral of 2020 constitutional amendments

The following table illustrates the vote requirements for the constitutional amendments certified for the ballot, the votes the amendment received, and how Democrats and Republicans voted on the amendment in each legislative chamber:

North Dakota Board of Higher Education Membership Amendment				Democrats	Republicans
Senate:	Required: 24	Yes votes: 27 (57.45%)	No votes: 17 (36.17%)	Yes: 8; No: 1	Yes: 19; No: 16
House:	Required: 48	Yes votes: 50 (53.19%)	No votes: 41 (43.62%)	Yes: 2; No: 13	Yes: 48; No: 28

Not on the ballot

Type	Title	Subject	Description	Status
CICA	Legalize Marijuana and Allow Home Growth Amendment	Marijuana	Legalizes marijuana use for residents 21 years of age and older; allows people to possess, grow, process, or transport up to 12 cannabis plants for personal use
CISS	Marijuana Legalization Statutory Initiative	Marijuana	Legalizes marijuana use for residents 21 years of age and older; prohibits home cultivation; limits possession to two ounces
CICA	North Dakota Prohibit Property Taxes Initiative	Taxes	Prohibits property taxes
CICA	Initiative and Referendum Process Measure	Direct democracy	Prohibits the state legislature from submitting a constitutional amendment to the voters that (1) would alter citizens' direct democracy (initiative and referendum) powers or (2) would constitute a resubmission of a constitutional amendment that was previously approved by the voters within the last seven years
VR	State Auditor Referendum	Administration of government and State gov't finance	Referendum to reject Section 3 of Senate Bill 2004, which concerns the powers and duties of the state auditor and provides funding guidelines for agencies when paying for audits
VR	Public Records of Legislators' Communications Referendum	State legislatures measures and Government accountability	Referendum to reject Senate Bill 2221, which would exempt state legislators' communications from public records whether the records are possessed by a legislator or any other public employee
VR	Theodore Roosevelt Presidential Library and Museum Endowment Fund Referendum	State gov't finance	Referendum to reject Section 5 of Senate Bill 2001, which would create the Theodore Roosevelt Presidential Library and Museum Endowment Fund
CISS	Minimum Wage Increase Initiative	Minimum wage	Increases the minimum wage to $15.00 per hour by 2021
LRCA	Amendment Concerning Institutions of Higher Education (HCR 3016)	Education	Removes reference to specific institutions of higher education
LRCA	Amendment Changing Voter and Legislative Approval Requirements and Signature Deadlines for Constitutional Amendments (SCR 4015)	Direct democracy measures	Requires a 60 percent supermajority vote at the ballot to approve constitutional amendments, a 60 percent supermajority vote in the legislature to refer constitutional amendments, and changes signature deadlines
LRCA	Require Constitutional Amendments to be Voted on at General Elections Measure (HCR 3034)	Direct democracy measures	Requires citizen-initiated constitutional amendments and legislatively referred constitutional amendments to appear on the ballot at the next general election (rather than special elections or primary elections)
LRCA	Amendment to Create a Process for Indirect Initiatives (HCR 3007)	Direct democracy measures	Creates an additional method of direct democracy in the form of indirect initiated constitutional amendments and indirect initiated state statutes
LRCA	Amendment to Require a Special Session to Consider Vetoed Bills (HCR 3006)	State legislatures	Requires a special legislative session for the consideration of items or bills vetoed by the governor after adjournment
LRCA	Amendment to Require a 60 Percent Supermajority Vote to Pass Initiated Constitutional Amendments (HCR 3010)	Direct democracy measures	Requires a 60% supermajority vote at the ballot to approve initiated constitutional amendments instead of a simple majority
LRCA	Two-Thirds Vote to Expend Principal and Earnings of Legacy Fund Amendment (HCR 3055)	State and local gov't finance	Requires a two-thirds supermajority vote in both houses of the legislature to expend principal and earnings from the state's Legacy Fund

Historical facts

See also: History of Initiative & Referendum in North Dakota and List of North Dakota ballot measures

• A total of 71 measures appeared on statewide ballots in North Dakota from 1996 to 2018.
• From 1996 to 2018, the number of measures on statewide ballots during even-numbered years ranged from two to 15.
• Between 1996 and 2018, an average of six measures appeared on the ballot in North Dakota during even-numbered election years.
• Between 1996 and 2018, about 56 percent (40 of 71) of the total number of measures that appeared on statewide ballots were approved, and about 44 percent (31 of 71) were defeated.

North Dakota ballot measures, 1996-2018
Total number	Approved	Percent approved	Defeated	Percent defeated	Annual average	Annual minimum	Annual maximum
71	40	56%	31	44%	6	2	15

Legislatively referred amendments on the ballot

From 1996 through 2018, the state legislature referred 35 constitutional amendments to the ballot. Voters approved 24 (68.57%) and rejected 11 (31.43%) of the referred amendments. All of the amendments were referred to the ballot for general elections during even-numbered election years (on both the June primary and November general election ballots). The average number of amendments appearing on the ballot in a given year (primary and general) was between two and three.

Legislatively referred constitutional amendments, 1996-2018
Total number	Approved	Percent approved	Defeated	Percent defeated	Annual average	Annual minimum	Annual maximum
35	24	68.57%	11	31.43%	2.92	0	8

State profile

Demographic data for North Dakota
	North Dakota	U.S.
Total population:	756,835	316,515,021
Land area (sq mi):	69,001	3,531,905
Race and ethnicity**
White:	88.7%	73.6%
Black/African American:	1.6%	12.6%
Asian:	1.2%	5.1%
Native American:	5.3%	0.8%
Pacific Islander:	0%	0.2%
Two or more:	2.2%	3%
Hispanic/Latino:	2.9%	17.1%
Education
High school graduation rate:	91.7%	86.7%
College graduation rate:	27.7%	29.8%
Income
Median household income:	$57,181	$53,889
Persons below poverty level:	12.2%	11.3%
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, "American Community Survey" (5-year estimates 2010-2015) Click here for more information on the 2020 census and here for more on its impact on the redistricting process in North Dakota. **Note: Percentages for race and ethnicity may add up to more than 100 percent because respondents may report more than one race and the Hispanic/Latino ethnicity may be selected in conjunction with any race. Read more about race and ethnicity in the census here.

Presidential voting pattern

See also: Presidential voting trends in North Dakota

North Dakota voted Republican in all seven presidential elections between 2000 and 2024.

Pivot Counties (2016)

Ballotpedia identified 206 counties that voted for Donald Trump (R) in 2016 after voting for Barack Obama (D) in 2008 and 2012. Collectively, Trump won these Pivot Counties by more than 580,000 votes. Of these 206 counties, four are located in North Dakota, accounting for 1.94 percent of the total pivot counties.

Pivot Counties (2020)

In 2020, Ballotpedia re-examined the 206 Pivot Counties to view their voting patterns following that year's presidential election. Ballotpedia defined those won by Trump won as Retained Pivot Counties and those won by Joe Biden (D) as Boomerang Pivot Counties. Nationwide, there were 181 Retained Pivot Counties and 25 Boomerang Pivot Counties. North Dakota had three Retained Pivot Counties, 1.66 percent of all Retained Pivot Counties.

More North Dakota coverage on Ballotpedia

• Elections in North Dakota
• United States congressional delegations from North Dakota
• Public policy in North Dakota
• Endorsers in North Dakota
• North Dakota fact checks
• More...

See also

• 2020 ballot measures
• List of North Dakota ballot measures
• Laws governing the initiative process in North Dakota
• North Dakota Legislature