Skip to content Skip to search

Republish This Story

* Please read before republishing *

We’re happy to make this story available to republish for free under an Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives Creative Commons license as long as you follow our republishing guidelines, which require that you credit The 19th and retain our pixel. See our full guidelines for more information.

To republish, simply copy the HTML at right, which includes our tracking pixel, all paragraph styles and hyperlinks, the author byline and credit to The 19th. Have questions? Please email [email protected].

— The Editors

Loading...

Modal Gallery

/
Sign up for our newsletter

Menu

  • Our Mission
  • Our Team
  • Latest Stories
  • Search
  • Upcoming Events
  • Contact Us
  • Newsletter
  • Donate
  • Work With Us
  • Fellowships
    • From the Collection

      Changing Child Care

      Illustration of a woman feeding a baby a bottle
      • 1 in 4 parents report being fired for work interruptions due to child care breakdowns

        Chabeli Carrazana · February 2
      • Washington, D.C., offers financial relief to local child care workers

        Orion Rummler · September 20
      • As climate change worsens hurricane season in Louisiana, doulas are ensuring parents can safely feed their babies

        Jessica Kutz · May 5
    • From the Collection

      Next-Gen GOP

      Illustration of a woman riding an elephant
      • Mayra Flores’ victory set a record for women in Congress. It also reflects the growing visibility of Republican Latinas

        Candice Norwood · June 21
      • A banner year for Republican women

        Amanda Becker · November 11
      • Republican women could double representation in the U.S. House

        Amanda Becker · November 4
    • From the Collection

      On The Rise

      Illustration of three women marching
      • Can Cheri Beasley build a winning coalition in North Carolina?

        Candice Norwood · October 11
      • Los Angeles has never elected a woman mayor. Karen Bass hopes to change that.

        Nadra Nittle · September 8
      • Judge J. Michelle Childs is confirmed to D.C. appeals court

        Candice Norwood · July 20
    • From the Collection

      Pandemic Within a Pandemic

      Illustration of four people marching for Black Lives Matter with coronavirus as the backdrop
      • Some LGBTQ+ people worry that the COVID-19 vaccine will affect HIV medication. It won’t.

        Orion Rummler · November 23
      • Why are more men dying from COVID? It’s a complicated story of nature vs. nurture, researchers say

        Mariel Padilla · September 22
      • Few incarcerated women were released during COVID. The ones who remain have struggled.

        Candice Norwood · August 17
    • From the Collection

      Portraits of a Pandemic

      Illustration of a woman wearing a mask and holding up the coronavirus
      • For family caregivers, COVID is a mental health crisis in the making

        Shefali Luthra · October 8
      • A new database tracks COVID-19’s effects on sex and gender

        Shefali Luthra · September 15
      • Pregnant in a pandemic: The 'perfect storm for a crisis'

        Shefali Luthra · August 25
    • From the Collection

      The 19th Explains

      People walking from many articles to one article where they can get the context they need on an issue.
      • The 19th Explains: What we know about Brittney Griner’s case and what it took to get her home

        Candice Norwood, Katherine Gilyard · December 8
      • The 19th Explains: Why the Respect for Marriage Act doesn’t codify same-sex marriage rights

        Kate Sosin · December 8
      • The 19th Explains: Why baby formula is still hard to find months after the shortage

        Mariel Padilla · December 1
    • From the Collection

      The Electability Myth

      Illustration of three women speaking at podiums
      • Mayra Flores’ victory set a record for women in Congress. It also reflects the growing visibility of Republican Latinas

        Candice Norwood · June 21
      • Stepping in after tragedy: How political wives became widow lawmakers

        Mariel Padilla · May 24
      • Do term limits help women candidates? New York could be a new testing ground

        Barbara Rodriguez · January 11
    • From the Collection

      The Impact of Aging

      A number of older people walking down a path of information.
      • From ballroom dancing to bloodshed, the older AAPI community grapples with gun control

        Nadra Nittle, Mariel Padilla · January 27
      • 'I'm planning on working until the day I die': Older women voters are worried about the future

        Mariel Padilla · June 3
      • Climate change is forcing care workers to act as first responders

        Jessica Kutz · May 31
    • From the Collection

      Voting Rights

      A series of hands reaching for ballots.
      • Connecticut voters approved early voting. Here’s how their new secretary of state wants to make it happen.

        Barbara Rodriguez · February 13
      • Women lawmakers in Minnesota are in the vanguard of the democracy movement

        Barbara Rodriguez · February 3
      • Election workers believe in our system — and want everyone else to, too

        Barbara Rodriguez, Jennifer Gerson · November 8

    View all collections

  • Explore by Topic

    • 19th Polling
    • Abortion
    • Business & Economy
    • Caregiving
    • Coronavirus
    • Education
    • Election 2020
    • Election 2022
    • Election 2024
    • Environment & Climate
    • Health
    • Immigration
    • Inside The 19th
    • Justice
    • LGBTQ+
    • Military
    • Politics
    • Press Release
    • Race
    • Sports
    • Technology

    View All Topics

Home
  • Our Mission
  • Our Team
  • Latest Stories
  • Search
  • Upcoming Events
  • Contact Us
  • Newsletter
  • Donate
  • Work With Us
  • Fellowships

We’re an independent, nonprofit newsroom reporting on gender, politics and policy. Read our story.

The 19th Represents Summit

Don’t miss our biggest event of 2023!

Register Today

Become a member

The 19th thanks our sponsors. Become one.

A composite photo of Kathrin Volochenko and Dave Nehring.
(Facebook/Kathrin Volochenko and David Andahl)

Election 2020

Woman says she deserves the North Dakota House seat won by man who died of COVID

The winner died before the election. The runner-up wants to join the 31 women in the state’s legislature.

Ko Bragg

General Assignment Reporter

Ko Bragg portrait

Published

2020-11-05 14:06
2:06
November 5, 2020
pm

Share

  • Twitter
  • Facebook
  • Email

We’re the only newsroom dedicated to writing about gender, politics and policy. Subscribe to our newsletter today.

A Republican man who died of COVID-19 last month won a seat in the North Dakota House of Representatives, defeating two Democratic women. Candidate David Andahl, 55, succumbed to the virus during early voting, when it was too late to take his name off of ballots. 

The morning after polls closed, Republican Gov. Doug Burgum appointed the president of a coal mining company to fill the seat — before the election was certified — drawing criticism from both parties.

The 19th thanks our sponsors. Become one.

Andahl won 36 percent of the vote. Republican Dave Nehring secured the other House seat — two representatives are elected from each district — in North Dakota’s 8th district outright with 41 percent of the vote. Democrats argue that Kathrin Volochenko, who won 11 percent of the vote, is entitled to Andhal’s seat. Linda Babb, another Democratic contender, received 10 percent of the vote.  

Volochenko, a native of Napa Valley, California, moved to North Dakota in 1979 after serving in the United States Air Force. She served two terms as the mayor of Kief City and owns and operates a long-haul trucking company, according to her campaign website. 

“By earning the second highest number of votes among qualified candidates, I will cherish the opportunity to represent District 8,” she said in a statement. “The governor’s announcement was inappropriate, and District 8 deserves a representative who will stand up for their interests, not the governor’s.” 

Kylie Oversen, the chair of the North Dakota Democratic-Nonpartisan League Party, says Volochenko should have earned the seat. She said Democrats are consulting with legal advisers on next steps.  

“The election is not yet official, but the governor already made a macabre power grab in an attempt to keep the seat he thought he had already bought by meddling in his party’s primary,” Oversen said in a statement. “The plan appears to have been in motion for weeks while the COVID-19 crisis and hospital bed shortage grew more dire.” 

Stories by experienced reporters you can trust and relate to.

Delivered directly to your inbox every weekday.

Please check your email to confirm your subscription!

Submitting…

Uh-oh! Something went wrong. Please try again later.

In an email to The 19th, Volochenko said she had no comment pending a response from her party leadership as to what their options are.

When Andahl died, Republican Secretary of State Al Jaeger reached out to Republican Attorney General Wayne Stenehjem for guidance. Stenehjem issued an opinion stating the “vacancy” would be decided by a state law that says the district committee of the Republican Party shall fill the seat within 21 days of notification. But the governor threw a wrench into these plans when he announced he’d appointed Wade Boeshans, president and general manager of BNI Energy. His argument is that vacancy statutes do not apply here because Andahl never occupied the seat. 

“After extensive research, it became clear that the only legal and constitutionally viable way to fill the District 8 seat is through gubernatorial appointment,” Burgum said in a press release. The governor said he made his decision through a “careful” review of the North Dakota Constitution, North Dakota Century Code, relevant case law, legislative history and attorney general opinions.

Stenehjem called Burgum’s news release both “inaccurate and untimely” — the governor has no authority to declare an election, the attorney general said in a statement, underscoring his October opinion should stand until such a question is presented to and decided by the courts. 

“Despite the governor’s efforts to sidestep the statutory process and the state Constitution, I have advised Secretary of State Jaeger to follow the opinion,” Stenehjem wrote. 

North Dakota is in the bottom 10 states for female representation in the state legislature, with 31 women across the House and Senate making up 22 percent of the state’s legislative branch, according to the Center for American Women and Politics. Republicans kept their supermajority in the state legislature, winning nearly all of the November races, achieving a 40-7 balance in the Senate and an 80-14 majority in the House of Representatives.

Share

  • Twitter
  • Facebook
  • Email

The 19th Represents Summit

Don’t miss our biggest event of 2023!

Register Today

Become a member

Up Next

A woman administers a mammogram to another woman.

Coronavirus

Mammograms fell sharply in early pandemic months, study finds

As COVID-19 cases climb again, cancer screenings are likely to plummet once more.

Read the Story

The 19th
The 19th is a 501(c)(3) tax-exempt organization. Our stories are free to republish in accordance with these guidelines.

  • Donate
  • Newsletter
  • Events
  • Search
  • Jobs
  • Fellowships
  • Contact Us
  • About Us
  • Community Guidelines
  • Membership
  • Membership FAQ
  • Major Gifts
  • Sponsorship
  • Privacy
  • Twitter
  • Facebook
  • Instagram