North Dakota voters approved a ballot measure Tuesday that would limit the age of members of Congress, though it’s likely to face a court challenge.

About 61% of voters supported the measure while 39% opposed it, with 374 of 385 precincts reporting.

The measure creates a constitutional amendment prohibiting North Dakotans from being elected or appointed to Congress if they would reach their 81st birthday before the end of their term.

Jared Hendrix, chair of the sponsoring committee, and Deputy Chief Attorney General Claire Ness have both said they expect the measure to be challenged in court. The state estimates the measure could cost up to $1 million to defend in court, a figure Hendrix called “inflated.”

The measure would not affect any North Dakota members of Congress in office or any candidates seeking election this year.

The Secretary of State’s Office approved the measure for the ballot in March after verifying it had received more than the 31,164 required signatures from North Dakota voters.

Hendrix has said age limits are necessary to make sure North Dakota’s congressional delegates  are healthy enough for the job and can adequately represent their constituents.

“We just decided talking about it, thinking about it, that 81 was a good number where there’s virtually no opposition at that point,” Hendrix told the North Dakota Monitor in a February interview.

Two Mandan voters had split opinions on the ballot measure.

Judy McDowall said she supported it because she doesn’t have confidence that someone approaching 80 can adequately represent constituents in Washington.

“I don’t like all these people with the age that they are in the U.S. Senate. I think that should be changed, absolutely,” McDowall said.

Ken Hoff, meanwhile, said he opposed the measure. He said voters can make the ultimate decision with their ballots if they believe a candidate is too old.

“Everybody should be able to run, even if they’re 90,” Hoff said.

This story was published by Nebraska Examiner, an editorially independent newsroom providing a hard-hitting, daily flow of news. Read the original article: https://nebraskaexaminer.com/2024/06/12/north-dakota-voters-approve-age-...