Party Lines Blur in North Dakota Legislative Race

(Dan Koeck/For the North Dakota Monitor)

(North Dakota Monitor) — North Dakota state Rep. Hamida Dakane used her closing statement at a recent candidate forum to talk about how well she worked with her mentor, the other state representative from her area of Fargo, Rep. Steve Swiontek.

“We represent District 10 very well,” Dakane said, emphasizing working on common-sense solutions on priority areas such as education, child care, affordable housing and mental health resources.

Dakane is one of only 16 Democrats in the North Dakota Legislature. Swiontek is part of the Republican supermajority.

Swiontek, who was unable to participate in the forum, reflected on the 2023 legislative session, Dakane’s first. It was a return to the Legislature for Swiontek, who previously served from 1976 to 1984.

“I remember when I sat down with her during the organizational session with her. I said, ‘You know, Hamida, we’re of different political parties, however, I believe it’s my goal to make you an effective legislator and the second most effective legislator from District 10.’”

Dakane and Swiontek were elected to two-year terms in the 2022 election instead of the usual four-year House term because District 10 was a new district for Fargo, created after the 2020 census.

In the 2022 election, there were two Democratic candidates for the two House seats from the districts and just one Republican – Swiontek.

This year, Dakane is the only Democrat running for the House and there are two Republicans, Swiontek and Jared Hendrix, a controversial figure in North Dakota Republican politics.

Swiontek described Hendrix as a “political operative” who has supported challenges to incumbent Republican legislators by more conservative candidates.

“He and I aren’t working together, because that isn’t how I do things,” Swiontek said.

The candidates Hendrix supported in the June primary failed to unseat the incumbent Republicans, which is problematic, Swiontek said.

“It’s going to be awfully hard to work with these individuals when he purposely went out there to try to defeat them,” Swiontek said. “So that’s why I didn’t feel comfortable running with him.”

Swiontek said he is working with the Republican Senate candidate in District 10, George Roughead, who is running against incumbent Democrat Ryan Braunberger.

Hendrix said that if elected, he would hope that other legislators could put campaigns in the past.

“It’s very disappointing that he’s supporting the Democrat and campaigning with the Democrat in that he’s unable to work with his fellow Republicans,” Hendrix said.

Swiontek would not go so far as saying he was campaigning with Dakane, but they have done some community meetings together, including one with new Americans in the district.

One influential North Dakota Republican supporting Dakane is Pat Finken, chair of the Brighter Future Alliance political action committee.

“If you talk to a lot of the business community, they were very impressed with the work she did,” Finken said. “Obviously, I think it’s an improvement over the alternative.”

The alternative being Hendrix. Brighter Future Alliance has targeted candidates from the more conservative wing of the party that Finken calls “angry and vindictive.” Campaign finance records show the group has spent more than $12,000 to oppose Hendrix.

“Our group is running a campaign to educate voters about Jared, the real Jared, not this character that he is trying to create in order to win in that district,” Finken said.

Finken’s group also has a similar campaign in Fargo’s District 46, targeting Republican Rep. Jim Kasper.

In North Dakota’s June primary election, Brighter Future Alliance worked against the reelection of Rep. Brandon Prichard of Bismarck, a leader of the North Dakota Republican Party’s conservative wing who campaigned during the primary against some Republican incumbents. Prichard lost to a more moderate Republican candidate, Mike Berg, in District 8.

Campaign finance reports show the District 10 race is likely to be among the most expensive North Dakota legislative races. Swiontek and Hendrix have each raised nearly $70,000, according to their most recent campaign finance filings.

Hendrix has received more than $27,300 in out-of-state donations, including a $10,000 donation from Howie Rich in Pennsylvania. Hendrix said he got to know Rich through his term limits efforts.

All but $5,000 of Swiontek’s donations are from North Dakota donors, according to records filed Oct. 4.

Dakane has raised more than $19,000, including more than $11,000 in donations less than $200, which can be made anonymously. All of her donations over $200 are from North Dakota donors.

She said she is getting donations from Republicans and Democrats but is not keeping track of party affiliation. Swiontek said he was aware of Republicans who had contributed to Dakane’s campaign.

During the candidate forum, Hendrix advocated for more limited government and for developing North Dakota’s workforce over incentives for economic development.

He noted that he led the effort for a statewide ballot measure to impose term limits on state legislators, something he said was opposed by the leadership of both parties. Hendrix also was a driver of a statewide measure passed in June that puts an age limit on members of Congress from North Dakota.

“I have no issue standing alone if it means I am standing for what I believe is right,” Hendrix said.