Bismarck Chiropractor Casts First Ballot After Becoming U.S. Citizen

“Yeah. I mean, I think it’s pretty cool, right? Cause I’ve never done it,” Dr. David German said Tuesday evening after casting his first ballot at age 58 in Bismarck, North Dakota. The chiropractor, who operates Healthways in the state capital, became a U.S. citizen in June 2025 after spending 33 years as a permanent resident, KFYR reported.

German’s vote marked the culmination of a journey that began in Saskatchewan, Canada, where a childhood hockey injury redirected his career ambitions, and ended with a naturalization ceremony that finally granted him the right to participate in American elections he had observed from the outside for more than three decades while building a life, a family, and a medical practice in North Dakota.

From the Rink to the Treatment Table

German grew up in Saskatchewan playing hockey until an early sports injury ended those dreams. “Just when I was younger. I remember I was playing hockey and got hurt playing hockey,” German said. “My dad took me to the chiropractor, and I thought, well, if I don’t make it as a hockey player, I’m going to be a chiropractor, and I didn’t change my mind, which is odd for being pretty young.”

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That youthful decision, made while recovering from an injury on the ice, carried him to chiropractic school in Minneapolis before he moved to Bismarck in 1992. He arrived in North Dakota’s capital and established himself in the medical community, eventually opening Healthways. Two years after his move, in 1994, he married a North Dakota native, started a family, and put down permanent roots in a community where he would spend the next three decades building his practice and raising three children while holding permanent resident status.

Three Decades on a Green Card

For 33 years, German lived and worked in Bismarck as a permanent resident, holding a green card that allowed him to live and work legally in the United States while maintaining his Canadian citizenship. The status permitted him to operate Healthways, pay taxes, and raise his family in the state capital, but it left him unable to vote in local, state, or federal elections. “Well, I got married in 1994 to a gal from North Dakota and then was a permanent resident for the last 33 years and then finally just decided it’s time to get my citizenship card, you know,” German said.

Bismarck Chiropractor Casts First Ballot at 58 After Gaining U.S. Citizenship

He submitted his naturalization application in April 2025 and completed the process two months later in June 2025, officially becoming a U.S. citizen after decades of residency. German retains dual citizenship with Canada, meaning he now holds allegiance to both his native country and his adopted home while gaining full voting rights in American elections for the first time in his 58 years.

His Children Voted Before Him

While German’s three children had all cast ballots in prior elections, Tuesday marked his first time participating in any American race. He managed to vote after finishing his patient appointments for the day at Healthways, slipping away from his chiropractic practice to exercise a right his family members had already enjoyed for years while he remained on the sidelines as a non-citizen.

Bismarck Chiropractor Casts First Ballot After Becoming U.S. Citizen

The First Ballot at Fifty-Eight

At 58 years old, German finally cast a ballot in the country where he had lived since 1992, worked since the early 1990s, and raised his family since 1994. The experience stood apart from his decades of watching elections from the outside while his children participated and while he maintained permanent resident status without the franchise.

“I guess I’ve never have voted, so it felt good to vote,” German said. “Yeah, it was interesting, it was fun.”