Editor’s note—The Dakotan has asked one legislator from either side of the aisle to answer the following question: “What challenges do you foresee on your side of the aisle as we enter a new campaign season in 2022?” What follows is the response we received from Rep. Sebastian Ertelt, R-Dis. 26, Lisbon.
We also received the following response [link] to the same question from Rep. Marvin Nelson, D-Dis. 9, Rolla.
For North Dakota political parties, elections begin with (Legislative) District Reorganization followed by District Endorsing Conventions, State Conventions, and the Primary Election, before the General Election in November. The main challenge for the North Dakota Republican Party in the upcoming 2022 elections will be electing Republicans. While that may sound like a statement from Captain Obvious, let’s take a closer look.
Many of us may have a different idea of what a North Dakota Republican is. I reference the state specifically here because the Republican Party in each state develops its own resolutions and platform, so that each state ends up with its own brand of Republican. To be sure, there is disagreement within the ND Republican Party as to what it means to be a Republican, just as there is in any other party. It is the process of developing the party platform, which in the ND Republican Party includes the resolutions process, that attempts to resolve those disagreements and define what a North Dakota Republican is. So let’s look at the ND Republican Party platform to see what it means to be a North Dakota Republican.
Political parties in ND organize on the legislative district level. Formerly in the ND Republican Party, District Chairmen would appoint a district party member to the Resolutions Committee in advance of the biennial State Convention. The Resolutions Committee would develop resolutions, and a platform that is a summary of those resolutions, to present for adoption or rejection by typically a thousand or more ND Republican Party members (delegates) at the State Convention. The resolutions are the more detailed of the two, and may include several whereas clauses, similar to the list of Facts submitted in the Declaration of Independence.
The most recent adopted ND Republican Party platform sets forth the following principles as those held by ND Republicans:
Individual Liberty
Personal Responsibility
Limited Government
Peace Through Strength and the Rule of Law Lower Taxes
Right to Bear Arms
Family Integrity and the American Moral Tradition
Quality Education Legislative Integrity
I urge you to follow the link to the platform and read each in its entirety. It will only take you four to five minutes. As you read through this platform, you will easily see why the majority of North Dakotans identify as Republicans, or at least elect those running as Republicans to public office. The last of these principles, Legislative Integrity, is the notion that Republican legislators should act in congruence with the principles of the party. I personally believe that this expectation should be extended to all Republican elected officials and state party members.
The ND Republican Party platform reflects conservative principles because the party has a conservative membership base. When a North Dakota elector votes for a Republican, they typically think they are voting for a conservative – one who adheres to the current ND Republican Party platform. The ND public, however, are becoming increasingly aware that many Republican legislators, statewide elected officials, and both district and state party officials do NOT adhere to these conservative Republican Party principles even though they may say they do while they are on the campaign trail.
More than that, several elected Republicans, including most members of the ND Republican Party State Executive Committee, have gone so far as to publicly reject the principle of Family Integrity and the American Moral Tradition via their renunciation of Resolution 31 in 2020. If you wish to review the resolutions, contact ND State Republican Party headquarters - just be sure to ask for the version that includes Resolution 31.
The ND Republican Party State Committee recently took action to change the rules regarding state party resolutions to further quell the voice of conservative grassroots party members and consolidate power. The revised rule (No. 6 Sec. 2) reduces the number of committee members by approximately 80% and places appointment power in the hands of regional chairmen instead of district chairmen. The new rule further limits the number of resolutions to no more than fifteen. A former Resolutions Committee Co-Chairman has even gone so far as to call for the elimination of the Resolutions process altogether – so much for the voice of the governed.
Again, the main challenge for the North Dakota Republican Party in the upcoming 2022 elections, will be electing Republicans to both party and public offices - people whose actions reflect support of Individual Liberty, Personal Responsibility, Limited Government, Peace Through Strength and the Rule of Law, Lower Taxes, the Right to Bear Arms, Family Integrity and the American Moral Tradition, Quality Education, and Legislative Integrity – not those who only pay lip service to its principles.
