North Dakota Voters Reject Measure 1 Constitutional Amendment Threshold

“I think they’re trying to make it harder and harder for somebody to get something passed,” Bismarck voter Ronda Wamsley said, explaining why she voted against Measure 1 on Tuesday. North Dakota voters rejected the measure by a margin of about 56% to 44%, according to complete but unofficial results, dealing a blow to the Republican-led Legislature that placed it on the ballot.

The defeat of Measure 1 — which would have required a 60% supermajority for future constitutional amendments to pass — marks another chapter in a years-long tug-of-war between state lawmakers and the electorate over how easily North Dakota’s founding document can be changed. KFGO reported that the measure’s failure leaves the simple majority standard in place, a threshold that has governed constitutional changes in the state for more than a century.

A Legislature Frustrated, Voters Unmoved

Lawmakers have repeatedly tried to raise the bar for amending the constitution, meeting with little success until June, when voters approved a single-subject requirement for future amendments. Measure 1 would have added a second, steeper hurdle: 60% approval. Republican Gov. Kelly Armstrong championed the measure, arguing that the constitution is too easy to change and pointing to out-of-state organizations with deep pockets that spend heavily on ballot initiatives. Armstrong also cited concerns about constitutionally mandated spending.

House Speaker Robin Weisz, a Republican from Hurdsfield who sponsored the measure in the Legislature, said he was disappointed but not surprised by the outcome. He pointed to the millions of dollars spent against the measure, telling reporters, “My personal opinion – many of the ads were quite deceptive and confusing to the voters.”

Millions Spent on Both Sides

The campaign drew heavy spending from national and state-level players. The Washington, D.C.-based Fairness Project contributed more than $1.9 million in opposition to Measure 1, while the Armstrong-aligned StrongND Fund spent more than $1.5 million in support. Opponents argued that a 60% threshold would effectively hand a veto to a minority of voters as small as 40% plus one vote, making it harder for citizens to enact changes they want.

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“A simple majority to amend the state constitution has worked for more than 100 years,” said Kathy Tweeten, president of the League of Women Voters of North Dakota, which opposed the measure. “The Legislature has tried to change that several times, and I think the people have spoken again.”

The historical record offers some support for both sides. The vast majority of constitutional amendments in recent years have passed with more than 60% support — including measures creating the Legacy Fund, establishing gubernatorial and legislative term limits, and setting a congressional age limit — and some have garnered more than 80% approval. Yet the single-subject rule approved in June shows voters will accept procedural limits when they perceive them as protecting the integrity of the process rather than blocking the will of the majority.

What the 60% Threshold Would Have Meant

Some anti-abortion proponents had argued that a 60% threshold would serve as a roadblock to a potential future abortion rights initiative they believe the Fairness Project or another outside organization might support. The Fairness Project pushed back on that framing, with Executive Director Hannah Ledford stating Tuesday that the organization has no plans to run an abortion rights initiative in North Dakota in 2028.

Voters in neighboring South Dakota faced a similar 60% measure, setting up a regional comparison of how prairie states balance direct democracy against legislative caution.

For Wamsley and others who voted no, the message was straightforward: a simple majority is good enough, and it is not the Legislature’s place to raise the bar. With Measure 1 defeated, North Dakota’s constitution remains amendable by the same majority vote that has applied for generations.

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