FARGO, N.D. (KFGO) – A group wanting to increase the voter threshold from a simple majority to 60% needed to amend the state’s constitution via initiated measure delivered more than enough signatures to the Secretary of State for approval to be placed on the November ballot last week. Protect North Dakota’s Constitution says it is a citizen-led group.
But a new grassroots opposition group called Conserve Our Rights says the effort is nothing but big money, special interests attempting to make it harder for North Dakotans to affect change. Records show the 60% effort’s biggest funders are the Lignite and Petroleum Councils, the North Dakota Chamber, and a PAC based in Wyoming.
Rick Gion runs North Dakota Voters First. He says the current system works.
“North Dakotans really like the initiated measure system because when the legislature can’t or won’t do things, it’s the peoples’ way of changing the law and making the state a better place,” Gion said.
Conserve Our Rights director Dustin Gawrylow says he’s skeptical the 60% group got enough signatures even though they turned in 2500 more than the 31,000 needed.
“It’s going to be tight. The general rule is that even if it’s a perfectly run campaign is going to have 8-10% that are bad, even if you do everything right. That’s why we say ‘get 15-20, maybe 30% extra,’ if you can,” he said.
Gawrylow says he hopes the Secretary of State’s office uses the same standard of scrutiny during the petition verification process as it did for the term limits petitions.
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