Rep. Eric Murphy announces reelection campaign for North Dakota House of Representatives

GRAND FORKS — Incumbent state Rep. Eric Murphy is running again to represent District 43 in the North Dakota House of Representatives.

A Republican from Grand Forks, Murphy is seeking his second term as a delegate of District 43.

“In 2022, I promised the residents of District 43 that when I was elected, I would represent all the people in District 43, not just those who voted for me,” Murphy said in a release sent to the media. “I held fast to that idea and worked hard to always respond to constituents in District 43 and elsewhere. While I may not always agree with a constituent’s position, I appreciate their participation in the political process and giving me an opportunity to understand their perspective on an issue.”

He said that his first session was spent transitioning from from his full-time job as an academic scientist to that of a legislator.

In his first session, he served on the House Education and Transportation committees, then was on the interim Education Committee and K-12 Funding Task Force. In his second term, he moved to the Appropriations Committee and the Human Resources Subcommittee. In the current interim, he is on the Budget Section, Human Resources Appropriations Committee, interim Education Committee and the Special Education Funding Committee.

“Education remains an important part of my legislative emphasis, working to enhance K-12 public education across North Dakota,” he said.

The release he sent to the media notes that he worked on a $1.9 million budget increase for addressing domestic abuse and restored funding for the Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders clinic at UND. He also worked to embed two Bureau of Criminal Investigation agents with the Grand Forks Police Department, helping assist local and regional agencies in combating cybercrime and cybersex crimes against children.

“When I went to Bismarck, I went ready to work for the residents of District 43, for Grand Forks and for all of North Dakota. I think I’ve done that,” Murphy said in his release.

Murphy graduated from Hastings College in Nebraska with majors in history and biology and completed his Ph.D. in biochemistry at The Ohio State University. He was in the pharmaceutical industry, then was was an assistant research professor at Texas A&M and later held a National Research Council Senior Fellowship at the National Institute on Aging before joining the faculty at UND. He is married, with three adult children.

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