Welcome to the North Dakota Democratic-NPL Insider, a newsletter that features regular updates about upcoming Dem-NPL events, legislative happenings, and news that affects North Dakotans! If you would like to have something added to the newsletter, email us at [email protected]. Spread the word of our newsletter by sharing our sign-up link today: https://demnpl.com/join-our-newsletter/.
AWESOME!!! Perhaps that one word most accurately describes our 2024 gubernatorial campaign for Governor of North Dakota.

In this case the “our” is me, Merrill Piepkorn, my Lieutenant Governor candidate Patrick Hart; our wives, Connie and Melissa, our children and other family members. “Our” also includes everyone who marched with us in the 18 or so parades, attended community celebrations, hosted Prairie Fire Picnics, our hard-working volunteer campaign committee, campaign manager, Shannon Charpentier, Lana Rakow and treasurer Cheryl Bergian.

Thank you to you folks who contributed your time, your talents, the gas cards, your houses for accommodations, your food, your money. Thank you for writing letters to the editor, for planting a sign in your yard, for hosting our 4’x8’ roadside signs, for getting your friends and family out to vote. A special thanks to Katrina and Trygve for being outstanding candidates and Trail Mates. Same for Tim Lamb, Tracey Wilkie, all of the Legislative District candidates, and of course Cheryl and the crew at state Dem-NPL HQ.

Like the Pekin People’s T-shirts say…”we are STRONGER TOGETHER”!! We can’t forget about the Fun Bus, The Magic Bus that crisscrossed North Dakota hauling hundreds of people, band equipment and campaign and picnic supplies thousands of miles. We’re also thankful for our Rav4 Hybrid that evolved from a really nice new car to a very reliable used car (over 40,000 miles!) in a year and a half!

An amazing thing has been happening over the past few days. A number of people, strangers for the most part, have been approaching me, congratulating me on a race well run and thanking me for the tone of our campaign. This is happening at the grocery store, the bank, the veterinary office, the café, the gas station, church, the doctor’s office and on the street as we’re walking the dogs. People have been paying attention and are extremely appreciative and proud of our “High Road” approach to the campaign.

It has been an honor to serve the state as the Democratic Nonpartisan League, (let’s not ever forget the NPL portion of our party’s name), candidate for Governor. I’m proud of our campaign and know we did the best we could with what we had. Connie, Daisy, Anabel, (yes, Daisy has a new puppy companion!), and I look forward to “what’s next.” You can be assured we will stay engaged. There’s never a dull moment. Personally and professionally, we will continue to strive to bring joy into people’s lives, uplifting their spirits wherever we go. Thank you and Peace to All.
Merrill and Connie

Upcoming Events!

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League of Women Voters of North Dakota - Advocacy 101

Saturday, December 7, 2024 – 2:00 PM

Join the League of Women Voters for a virtual Advocacy 101 training to help you prepare for the North Dakota Legislative Session. December 7, 2024 at 2pm

Cass County Dem Women's Plus Holiday Dinner

Monday, December 9, 2024 – 6:00 PM
Avalon Events Center
2525 9th Ave S, Fargo

Save the date for Annual Holiday Dinner. Social hour, 6 pm, Dinner, 7 pm. Have items for the Silent Auction - contact us at [email protected].

Letters to members were sent out November 14 which includes registration information, and the Person of the Year ballot. If you or someone you know wishes to become a member or wants more information, contact us at [email protected]. Please RSVP by Nov. 26.

Menu is Italian Buffet including a Vegetarian Option or Gluten-Free if requested

Help us spread our message—share these posts from the past week!

Letter: There's danger in silencing discourse


Thus, we, the undersigned, are alarmed at your decision to not accept or limit columns from local writers regarding national events and politics. Your directive included this sentence: “The exception will be when a national issue has direct impact on something or someone local or regional.”

It is inconceivable to us that the Forum Communications board would think that this national election does not have a “direct impact on something or someone local or regional.” This is making a “correction?” “The election is behind us?” Does “a reset” mean that we quash opinion and analysis? Indeed, democracy does die in darkness. What could be MORE relevant to us here at home?

Read More

Hogan, Ista will lead North Dakota Dems in legislative session


“We look forward to getting to work on the most pressing issues facing North Dakota, including housing, property taxes, workforce development, child care, and assuring available and affordable mental health care across the state,” Hogan said in a statement.

Read Now

McFeely: Congratulations to Interior Secretary Harold Hamm


Money can't buy you love, but it can buy you power to drill baby drill. Congratulations to the billionaire oil magnate from Oklahoma, who made a bunch of North Dakotans rich and helped the state stack money in its coffers like pancakes at IHOP. But nothing in this life comes without a price. As Don Corelone said, "Some day, and that day may never come, I will call upon you to do a service for me."

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Letter: Erosion of values evident in election


Trust. We just elected a president who attacks everyone who does not support and is not loyal to him. He demands that we trust only him.

Truth. We just elected a president who lies constantly about everything. He believes he is the source of all truth.

Fairness. We just elected a president who believes our elections are fair only when he wins.

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Joel Heitkamp and Jamie Selzler break down Cabinet picks in the Trump administration


Jamie Selzler is the Democratic National Committee Committeeman, and joins Joel on "News and Views" to talk about live after the 2024 Election. They specifically hit on immigration, President-elect Trump's Cabinet picks, and reaching rural voters.

Listen Now

North Dakota Supreme Court considers motion to reinstate abortion ban while appeal is pending


“The district court correctly held that the ban violates the rights of both physicians and patients, and staying the judgment and allowing the state to continue to enforce an unconstitutional law would be nonsensical,” Mehdizadeh said.

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Incompetence, Right out of the Gaetz


No one who pays the slightest bit of attention to politics is genuinely surprised by Donald Trump’s selection of Matt Gaetz for Attorney General. Gaetz is woefully unqualified and unaccomplished, of course, but that is almost a prerequisite for a cabinet position in the Trump Administration. The only qualification that really matters is unwavering loyalty to Donald Trump, and it’s hard to imagine that anyone—North Dakota’s Doug Burgum and South Dakota’s Kristi Noem excepted—will enjoy their turn at bootlicking for the cameras at a cabinet meeting as much as Gaetz, who is also a good fit because, like many in Trump’s orbit, he likes his women “on the younger side.”

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Governor-elect Armstrong names Democratic lawmaker to cabinet


The Republican congressman has named Democratic State Rep. Corey Mock of Grand Forks as Chief Information Officer for the Information and Technology Department.

Mock is a real estate agent and leadership consultant who was first elected to the legislature in 2009. He’s a University of North Dakota graduate.

Read More

Letter: We better pay attention


The Forum Editorial Board, in an opinion piece , says they are planning to focus on local and regional issues. After a tumultuous election, they say it is time to reset. I agree it is very important to cover local issues. However, we are not isolated. Things that happen on the national level will certainly impact us.

We have just elected a president who told his followers “I am your retribution.” He calls those who oppose him “the enemy from within” and says they are a bigger threat to our country than foreign adversaries. He has threatened to use our justice system against them and even the military to attack U.S. citizens. He calls the free press the “enemy of the people” and threatens to punish those, including television networks, that don’t follow his bidding.

Read More

Mike McFeely, "I don't know that America is what I thought we were"


Joel Heitkamp is joined in the KFGO Studio by Forum Columnist, Mike McFeely. Joel and Mike talk about the election results and what the races say about America, as well how the national Democrats are struggling to campaign in rural states.

Listen Now

Congressman Riggleman, "...all these picks have no competence or experience to lead"


Joel Heitkamp is joined by former Congressman Denver Riggleman for a conversation on President-elect Trump's picks for his Cabinet, specifically looking at Congressman Matt Gaetz as Attorney General.

Mr. Riggleman previously served in the U.S. Congress, as a Republican representing the 5th District of Virginia and as Senior Technical Adviser to the January 6th Select Committee. His national security background includes serving as an intelligence officer for the USAF where he deployed for multiple operations including directly after 9/11 with the 34th Bomb Squadron. Denver was posted to the National Security Agency in 2003.

Listen Now

Don't miss these national stories!

The majority of news influencers are conservative men, study finds


According to Pew's sample, men dominate the news influencer space space by a margin of roughly two to one, comprising 63% of all news content creators compared to just 30% who are women. This gender disparity is compounded by a political tilt: 27% of news influencers explicitly identify as conservative, significantly outnumbering the 21% who lean liberal—a gap that balloons on platforms like Facebook, where right-leaning influencers outnumber left-leaning ones by a staggering three-to-one ratio. 39% of news influencers explicitly identify as conservative on Facebook, compared with just 13% who identify as liberal.

Read more

Lawmakers are concerned about background checks of Trump’s Cabinet picks as red flags surface


“There are very real liabilities on the security side if you don’t get this right,” said Dan Meyer, a Washington lawyer at the Tully Rinckey law firm who specializes in background checks, security clearances and federal employment law.

Read more

Matt Gaetz May Have Just Killed the Ethics Report, but Court Filings Paint a Damning Picture


According to a deposition with one of Gaetz’s closest friends and financial information referenced during that testimony, the former congressman sent thousands of dollars to young women. He attended sex parties where a 17-year-old was present, according to three different affidavits from women in attendance. And he blew off a subpoena investigating him for sex trafficking, resulting in the FBI seizing his cell phone.

Read More

With RFK Jr.’s HHS nomination, autism advocates fear a return to ‘a dark age’


“The belief that vaccines cause autism isn’t just factually wrong,” said Zoe Gross, Director of Advocacy at the Autistic Self Advocacy Network. “If you’re saying vaccines cause autism and therefore, people shouldn’t get vaccines, you are also saying it’s worse to be autistic than to die of measles. That’s not a belief that autistic people are happy with.”

Read more

Trump expected to name Project 2025 architect Russ Vought to head White House budget office


After a year of claiming he had nothing to do with Project 2025, President-elect Donald Trump is appointing one of its chief architects to lead the Office of Management and Budget, multiple outlets reported. Russ Vought, who previously occupied the role for two years in Trump's first term, will return with wide-ranging powers to shape Trump's budget and examine the federal bureaucracy to ensure that it complies with his chosen policies.

Read More

RFK Jr. May ‘Prioritize’ Banning Some Infectious Disease Research


But some health security experts say that a ban on gain-of-function research could have a chilling effect on infectious disease studies in the U.S. because it’s difficult to define a clear scope for the term since the nature of scientific research means it can be impossible to determine the exact effects of an experiment on a pathogen. This could lead to scientists avoiding potentially meaningful research out of fear, said Gigi Kwik Gronvall, a professor at the Center for Health Security at Johns Hopkins University.

Read More

Police report details alleged sexual assault by Trump's defense pick Pete Hegseth


A woman told police that Pete Hegseth, President-elect Donald Trump’s choice for defense secretary, took her phone and blocked her from leaving his hotel room before sexually assaulting her in 2017 after a Republican women’s convention in California, according to official records of a police investigation released Wednesday night.

Read More

Silent Voices: Indigenous Histories and Volunteer Firefighter Stories


Then, we sit down with Donovan Archambault, a tribal leader and author whose new book offers an eye-opening account of life at a government-backed Indian school in the 1950s. Drawing from his own experiences and those of his community, Donovan reveals that approximately 90% of his fictional book is based on actual events. Listeners will learn about the harsh realities faced by Native American children, including abuse and cultural erasure. He emphasizes the importance of advocating and reclaiming Indigenous cultural values to foster societal healing.

Read More

The Trouble With Tulsi


For this reason, among others—including the fact that she has no relevant experience—U.S. intelligence officials are alarmed at her nomination. The DNI’s job is to supervise and coordinate the work of all 18 U.S. intelligence agencies, including the CIA, the FBI, and the National Security Agency. This means that she would have access to all the secrets collected and reported within all the intel agencies. The DNI also prepares the President’s Daily Brief, notifying the commander in chief of new intelligence on various crises and other important developments in the world, which might in turn guide his policies.

Read More
The Century Club supports our year-round work to build party infrastructure supporting candidate recruitment, local district and regional leadership, issue-based education, and tools for Dem-NPL success.
Help us elect great Democrats up and down the ballot!
The North Dakota Democratic-NPL is launching a new grassroots program called “Neighbor to Neighbor” where volunteers will connect with voters in your community to elect Democrats up and down the ballot. As a volunteer, you will be responsible for connecting with voters in 25 homes in your neighborhood or friends and family to help elect Democrats up and down the ballot about 3-4 times this year.
Grassroots organizers are the lifeblood of the Dem-NPL! Sign up to volunteer with the Dem-NPL!

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