ND Democratic-NPL House Legislative Caucus Elects New Leaders In Response To Term Limits
The North Dakota Democratic-NPL House Caucus has elected new leadership to serve during the 2023-2024 interim session of the 68th Legislative Assembly. Rep. Zac Ista (District 43, Grand Forks) has been elected Minority Leader, Rep. Joshua Boschee (District 44, Fargo) has been elected Assistant Minority Leader, and Rep. Jayme Davis (District 9A, Rolette) has been elected Caucus Chair.
Boschee, who has served as the House Minority Leader since 2019, said the caucus decided to elect new leadership for the interim in response to term limits adopted by North Dakota voters in 2022. “The Democratic-NPL House Caucus believes in intentional succession planning given the new reality of term limits,” said Boschee. “Bringing new leadership on board now will allow for ongoing mentorship, promote continuity of representation, and ensure adequate time for the new leaders to strengthen productive working relationships with the majority leaders and across state government ahead of the 2025 legislative session,” he added.
Ista, who has served in the House since 2020, expressed his excitement to serve and his gratitude for Boschee’s leadership. “I am humbled and honored that my Dem-NPL colleagues elected me to serve as Minority Leader,” Ista said. “Rep. Boschee is a great friend and mentor, and I appreciate the confidence he has placed in me to be his successor. The positive impact he has made both on our caucus and on public policy in North Dakota cannot be overstated, and I aspire to build upon that impressive legacy” added Ista.
Davis, who was first elected in 2022 and is an enrolled member of the Turtle Mountain Band of Chippewa Indians echoed Ista’s excitement about her new opportunity. “I am excited to serve my Democratic-NPL colleagues as their caucus chair,” said Davis. “During the 2023 legislative session, our House caucus led the passage of nearly 40 laws and resolutions impacting the biggest issues facing North Dakota, like making investments in workforce development and childcare. I look forward to building off this success and helping to grow our caucus in the 2024 elections.” Davis is the first Native American elected to a North Dakota leadership position.
Davis replaces Rep. Gretchen Dobervich (District 11, Fargo) as Democratic-NPL House Caucus Chair. Dobervich held the position since 2018. “It truly has been an honor to serve the Democratic-NPL House Legislative Caucus. I am very excited Rep. Davis has been elected by her peers to serve,” said Dobervich. “She will add not only diversity to our caucus leadership team but also years of leadership experience and knowledge,” added Dobervich.
The regular session of the 68th Legislative Assembly concluded its work in the early hours of April 30. The newly elected leaders of the Dem-NPL House Legislative Caucus will serve until caucus leadership elections at the Organizational Session of the 69th Legislative Assembly in December 2024.
