North Dakota
New North Dakota Republican group aims to push back against far-right faction • Nebraska Examiner
A new North Dakota Republican group has formed to push back against a perceived ultraconservative influence in state politics.
Former NDGOP Chair Perrie Schafer has formed the LegeNDary Fund, which he described in a letter to potential donors as supporting “center-right” Republicans. Schafer wrote that it will become increasingly difficult to win elections statewide and nationally if candidates, elected officials and leaders keep trying to “burn the house down.”
The purpose of the group, he said, is to ensure that North Dakota doesn’t become like other Republican-led states, such as Arizona and Georgia, where, even with legislative majorities, they lose statewide offices and national elections to Democrats.
“What we see happening is when the ultraconservatives take over a state, they take over the state party, but they lose elections,” Schafer told the North Dakota Monitor.
As a result, a majority of the Republican Party became less engaged and started feeling they were not being represented, he said.
“All we’re trying to do is suggest that people from the center of the party get more engaged,” Schafer said.
Schafer was voted out as chair of the NDGOP in 2023 after serving a two-year term and replaced by current chair Sandi Sanford, who won by one vote.
“Some people are going to try to blow it out of proportion saying, ‘this is Perrie Schafer against Sandi Sanford,’’’ Schafer said. “No. It has nothing to do with that.”
He also added, “This is not an anti-NDGOP thing at all.”
Schafer registered the LegeNDary political action committee and LegeNDary multicandidate committee with the North Dakota Secretary of State’s Office.
A political action committee, or PAC, can spend funds on the same things as a political party, said Lee Ann Oliver, election specialist for the North Dakota Secretary of State’s Office.
Sanford said she doesn’t see the LegeNDary political action committee as a threat to the NDGOP.
“That’s fair game,” Sanford said. “There’s different factions on both sides of the aisle that have PACs, that’s fair game in politics.”
However, she added she sees the group as settling more on the center-left than the center-right.
“I’m a middle-right conservative,” she said. “And there’s possibly an ocean between me and the far, far-right.”
Sanford said she’s been trying to unify the party over the last year and the LegeNDary group may have the opposite effect.
She also said it’s unclear what the outcomes of the new LegeNDary group are going to be, but she considered the timing of the group’s launch to be “poor” because of the upcoming party presidential caucuses on Monday and looming statewide NDGOP Convention in April.
“It is an indication that they are supporting the bypass of the NDGOP endorsement,” Sanford said. “And for a former chair to say that he supports the NDGOP, I don’t see that in this effort at this time.”
Schafer served as the Republican National Committee’s Midwest Regional Chair from 2021 to 2022, which represented Republican interests for 14 states. He also served the RNC on the nine-member National Resolution Committee.
Rep. Mike Nathe, R-Bismarck, who along with his fellow District 30 Republican incumbents skipped their district endorsing convention to proceed directly to the June 11 statewide primary, said he considers himself a centrist-conservative and sees the new group as a reaction to the increase in far-right candidates, lawmakers and local and state party officials. He added the perceived differences between factions within the party may steer donor dollars to these upstart organizations.
“I think in the past … a lot of this money probably would’ve gone to the party,” Nathe said. “But now, these monies are ending up in these various PACs to support candidates that they want.”
Schafer said LegeNDary is not affiliated with a multicandidate committee registered by Rep. Brandon Prichard, R-Bismarck, under the same name.
This article first appeared in the North Dakota Monitor, a sister site of the Nebraska Examiner in the States Newsroom network.
North Dakota
Runners will soon trek across North Dakota to bring awareness for families grieving the loss of a child – KVRR Local News
FARGO, N.D. (KVRR) — For more than 400 miles, 12 runners will trek across North Dakota to carry the stories of love, loss, and resilience from community to community.
“After having run Haven since 2017, the 10.15 Project came, and it just is so exciting because it’s really looking at pregnancy and infant loss and putting it in a new light. And really giving people the opportunity to do something that you can see and it’s meaningful,” said Jen Burgard, Founder and Executive Director of Haven.
The 10.15 Project was co-founded by Haven, an organization that supports grieving families. The relay begins on International Pregnancy and Infant Loss Remembrance Day. And during the four days, the team hopes to bring awareness to families.
“It gives you pieces of solitude, of quiet, of reflection, and also a purpose. It gives you meaning, and I think endurance is one of the biggest pieces of this. It’s the endurance required to navigate pregnancy and infant loss is extreme. And I think this really mirrors that,” said Burgard.
While many of the runners come from different fields, many have also experienced a loss themselves.
“When it happened in my family, it was kind of something we were all struck by. You realize how common it is. And you know, I want to bring light to that,” said Ty Casey, Runner and Learning and Development Specialist at TrueNorth Steel.
Casey has multiple runs planned over the next few months, but with this run in particular, he hopes this will bring awareness.
“If this is one thing that can help bring light to it and help people be more open and help people to talk about it, and take some of the grief away that would be totally ideal for us just to help out a little bit,” said Casey.
The relay begins on October 15 in Medora and will end on October 18th in Fargo.
North Dakota
Behind the Badge – Spring Fever
Spring Fever
District Game Warden Sam Feldmann
As winter begins to fade and ice fishing begins to slow, everyone gets the itch to be outside on nice days when it’s warming and the sun is shining. People are beginning to think about their garden or outdoor projects around the house they have been pondering all winter.
While others have been thinking about open water fishing, getting the boat ready, hitting the field to look for shed antlers in a favorite spot they’ve been watching deer all winter, or slipping into the field to lure a spring gobbler into shotgun range with a new call they’ve been practicing with all winter.
With the excitement of warm weather and getting out to enjoy everything a spring day has to offer, I would like to remind everyone of a few things while enjoying what North Dakota has to offer.
This year is a registration year for all motorized watercrafts. This doesn’t just mean you have to renew your registration. It means that when you get the new red stickers sporting “28” on them that they must be affixed to both sides of the bow of the boat.
Another reminder is that if you are going shed hunting, there are a few things to remember. Shed antlers are legal to possess. This time of year, our officers receive lots of calls about shed hunters locating “dead heads,” which are animals that have died and the antlers are still attached to the skull plate.
If you happen to locate a dead head, you cannot possess it without contacting your local game warden and receiving a permit for the animal. Also, if you are going to shed hunt on posted private property or a Private Lands Opens To Sportsmen tract, you need to obtain permission to do so. Wildlife management areas and other state and federal lands are open to shed hunting, but a good rule of thumb is to check the regulations on public property before heading out.
If you are going to be chasing turkeys this spring through the timber, there are a few things that should be remembered. Make sure you have your tag with you when you are in the field. Remember that your tag is only legal for one bearded wild turkey. If you are lucky enough to harvest a turkey you fooled into coming to your calling and decoy, you must tag it before doing anything else.
One last reminder for the spring activities. Remember that all licenses, whether it’s a hunting license or fishing license, expired March 31 and needed to be renewed as of April 1, 2026
With these few reminders out of the way, remember to have fun and enjoy what the great state of North Dakota has to offer.
North Dakota
Retired Game & Fish Director facing new charge of molesting a child – KVRR Local News
MANDAN, N.D. (KVRR-KFGO) – Former North Dakota Game & Fish Director Terry Steinwand has been charged with molesting a child.
The Class “A” misdemeanor was filed after a Morton County District Court judge rejected a proposed plea agreement to a felony charge and prosecutors dismissed the charge while retaining the right to file an amended charge.
Steinwand is from Mandan. The 72-year-old is now charged with one count of sexual assault-offensive contact. The charge carries a maximum sentence of one year in jail.
Steinwand was originally charged in September, 2025, when police say he admitted to sexual misconduct.
Steinwand worked for the Game & Fish Dept. for 40 years. He led the agency for about 15 years and retired in 2021.
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