The League of Women Voters of North Dakota’s top priority this legislative session was protecting voting rights to ensure our elections remain fair and accessible for all eligible North Dakota voters. Our advocacy volunteers were busy tracking 39 election bills and resolutions — some good, some bad, and some neutral.
First, the bad bills. We saw bills that would eliminate mail-in voting, restrict ballot drop boxes, limit vote centers, and require proof of citizenship for all voters. The good news is these bills failed to pass.
What wasn’t good for voting access was a bill to require recently naturalized citizens to prove their citizenship in order to vote. With more than 700 citizens naturalized in North Dakota each year and no reports of noncitizens voting in our elections, this bill will place a hardship on our new American and immigrant voters. We opposed this bill and will continue to advocate for recently naturalized voters.
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Second, the good bills. Two bills to increase transparency will become law:
House Bill 1424 requires candidates to file with an email address. Most of the 2,000 candidates in the June 2022 primary election submitted only a mailing address when they filed, which means unless you knew the candidate, you could only contact them by sending them mail. This new law will allow voters to more easily contact their candidates and make it easier for us to invite candidates to fill out our voter guide on VOTE411.org.
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House Bill 1257 requires school board members — in school districts with a fall enrollment of 750 students or more — to submit campaign finance reports. We’ve seen large fields of candidates in some recent school board races, like in 2022 in Grand Forks where 23 candidates ran for the five open school board seats. This new law will align school board reporting requirements with other public offices in the state and is a boon for voters wanting to learn more about their candidates.
Lastly, I would be remiss if I did not mention that the bill to ban ranked choice and approval voting in North Dakota will not become law, due in no small part to Fargo voters reaching out to legislators across the state. This is good news for cities to keep local control of their elections and for Fargo which uses approval voting for city elections.
We were pleased to see the increase in election transparency this session and will continue advocating for the voting rights of North Dakota voters.
President, League of Women Voters of North Dakota
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After surviving the gauntlet stretch of its non-conference schedule, No. 6 Alabama will hope a chilly trip to the Great Plains won’t cool down its recent run. North Dakota native Grant Nelson will get a homecoming game as the Crimson Tide travels to face North Dakota on Wednesday night. The matchup will be the first leg of a two-for-one series with the Fighting Hawks traveling to Tuscaloosa, Alabama in 2025 and 2027.
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Wednesday will mark the first matchup between Alabama and UND. Nelson, on the other hand, boasts a 6-1 record against the Fighting Hawks, dating back to his time at North Dakota State. The Devils Lake, North Dakota native averaged 16.8 points and 5.28 rebounds while shooting 56% from the floor, including 10 of 21 (47.6%) from beyond the arc in those seven games. That includes his last outing against UND when he dropped 36 points and seven boards while shooting 13 of 20 from the floor.
Here’s everything you need to know about Wednesday’s game.
How to watch
Who: No. 6 Alabama (8-2) at North Dakota (4-8)
When: 8 p.m. CT, Saturday, Dec. 14
Where: Betty Engelstad Sioux Center, Grand Forks, North Dakota
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Watch: CBS Sports Network (play-by-play: Alex Heinert, analyst: Shon Morris, sideline Missy Heidrick)
Nate Oats knows he’ll have far more talent on the floor than his opposition on Wednesday night. The Alabama head coach even admitted as much during his Tuesday press conference. It’s hard to find a betting line for Wednesday’s matchup, but it’s safe to say the Tide is heavily favored.
While Alabama is confident about coming back from North Dakota with a win, Oats is hoping to see his team display better focus than it has at times this season. The Tide played with its food during non-conference wins against Arkansas State and McNeese State in November. Last week, it allowed Creighton to get back into the game twice before polishing off the Bluejays for an 83-75 victory. Regardless of the score Wednesday night, Oats said he wants to see his team play winning basketball for 40 minutes.
“We’ve got some guys that are really talented, want to be good, don’t quite realize the mental side of it, staying locked in on every possession to close the game,” Oats said. “We’ve got to play every possession. We can’t play the score. We’ve got to be locked in and try to get stops every possession.”
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A name to know
North Dakota guard Treysen Eaglestaff leads the Summit League averaging 18.6 points per game and has recorded at least 12 points in all of his 12 starts this season. While the majority of that production has come against mid-major opposition, the 6-foot-6, 190-pound junior scored 13 points while shooting 3 of 6 from beyond the arc during a loss at Notre Dame in November.
“He’s a good shooter, can get to the rim, get to the free-throw line,” Oats said. “He’s good, and they know he’s good. They get him the ball all kinds of different ways.”
Oats said Alabama might treat Eaglestaff the way it did North Carolina guard R.J. Davis, by putting a bigger body on him. Davis scored 18 points during Alabama’s 94-79 win at North Carolina earlier this month. However, the Tide was able to hold the reigning ACC Player of the Year to 1 of 11 shooting from beyond the arc.
Game notes
— Wednesday’s matchup will feature two of the best rebounding teams in the nation. North Dakota ranks No. 8, averaging 15.08 rebounds per game. Meanwhile, Alabama ranks No. 8, averaging 30.4 defensive boards.
— Nelson currently ranks fifth in the SEC averaging 8.0 rebounds per game.
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— Wednesday’s game will be a drop in competition for an Alabama team that has faced eight programs that currently rank inside KenPom’s top 100. Six of those rank inside the top 50.
— Paul Sather is in his sixth season at North Dakota. With 65 victories, he is one of eight coaches in program history to reach the 60-win mark.
— North Dakota was picked to finish sixth in the Summit League while Eaglestaff and Amar Kuljuhaovic earned First Team All-Summit League recognition.
FARGO — A Moorhead man faces multiple charges after a run in with a North Dakota Highway Patrol trooper around 4:30 p.m. on Tuesday, Dec. 17.
Oscar Lee Jr., a 44-year-old Moorhead resident, was in a vehicle with children when a North Dakota Highway Patrol trooper made contact with him in a parking lot at 2535 23rd Ave. S., in Fargo, according to a release from the North Dakota Highway Patrol.
The trooper arrested Lee Jr. for driving under the influence. When Lee Jr. was placed under arrest, he “resisted” and kicked at officers, the release said. A trooper was struck several times and went to a nearby hospital to be treated for minor injuries.
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Oscar Lee Jr.
Cass County Jail
Lee Jr. was arrested for driving under the influence and driving under revocation, the release said. He was also arrested for felon resisting arrest, assault on a peace officer and terrorizing.
Lee Jr. is being held in Cass County Jail, according to the release. No charges have officially been filed, according to North Dakota Court Records.
Lee Jr. pleaded guilty to felony terrorizing and reckless endangerment in 2022 and two separate misdemeanor DUI incidents in 2024.
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Our newsroom occasionally reports stories under a byline of “staff.” Often, the “staff” byline is used when rewriting basic news briefs that originate from official sources, such as a city press release about a road closure, and which require little or no reporting. At times, this byline is used when a news story includes numerous authors or when the story is formed by aggregating previously reported news from various sources. If outside sources are used, it is noted within the story.
FARGO — Reading test scores are declining across the U.S., but North Dakota is working to reverse that trend.
The National Assessment of Educational Progress, also known as “The Nation’s Report Card,” reported a significant decline in U.S. reading scores between 2019 and 2022.
A statewide plan in North Dakota is focusing on key areas of development: Phonics, vocabulary, comprehension and oral reading fluency, or reading aloud.
It’s called “The Science of Reading in North Dakota.”
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“COVID played a big role in this. We certainly went backwards after COVID, and that’s unfortunate, but I think we’re taking the correct steps to move forward now,” Nick Archuleta, president of North Dakota United, said. North Dakota United is the union of the North Dakota Education Association and the North Dakota Public Employees Association.
A recent survey by the National Literacy institute shows 21% of adults in the U.S are illiterate and 54% have a literacy rate below a sixth-grade level.
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