Jun. 8—GRAND FORKS — A seven-person race for North Dakota’s U.S. House seat will soon be trimmed as voters on Tuesday, June 11, decide the finalists who will progress to the November general election.

Five candidates are vying for the Republican nomination and two seek the Democratic nomination during the primary. Voters will be able to vote in either the Republican primary or the Democratic primary. This is the first time in 34 years that both parties have competitive primaries at the same time; it’s one of the most

competitive primaries since the current seat was established in 1972.

The seat doesn’t have an incumbent, as its current holder, Rep. Kelly Armstrong, is running to become North Dakota’s next governor.

In the Republican primary, there is:

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Alex Balazs,

a military veteran from Cando who has said he can be the unifying candidate for the party. Balazs received the endorsement from the NDGOP at its

April convention

. Balazs has served in the Air Force, Navy and Army National Guard and has said those experiences set him apart because he’s the only candidate who has federal experience.

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Rick Becker,

a former state legislator from Bismarck and founder of the state’s far-right Bastiat Caucus. Becker is a plastic surgeon and businessman and has been leading an effort to end property taxes in the state by a constitutional amendment. He has said he represents the grassroots, non-establishment side of the state GOP. Becker was ineligible to receive the Republican endorsement since he ran as an independent in 2022 against Sen. John Hoeven. Becker has been endorsed by conservative members of Congress like Sen. Rand Paul, R-Kentucky, and Rep. Matt Gaetz, R-Florida.

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Julie Fedorchak,

Public Service Commission member and president of the National Association of Regulatory Utility Commissioners. She has said she can be the leader that North Dakotans want in this seat. Fedorchak has been endorsed by former President Donald Trump, Sen. John Hoeven and Gov. Doug Burgum. The only candidate who’s won a statewide office, she garnered at least 65% of the vote in her last three Public Service Commission elections. She lives in Bismarck.

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Cara Mund,

a lawyer based in Bismarck and former Miss America. Mund has run for this seat before — in 2022 — as an independent against Armstrong. She declared her candidacy on the last day to file for office, saying none of the other candidates represent her viewpoints. Mund has said she is pro-choice and that the other candidates are too dependent on the opinion of Trump.

* Sharlet Mohr, of Williston. Mohr previously lost a special election for a spot on the Williston School Board and has kept a low profile throughout the race, not attending any of the debates. Mohr is active in the Moms for Liberty group, a conservative group that advocates

against school curricula that mention LGBT rights, race and ethnicity and discrimination.

According

to a North Dakota News Cooperative poll,

28% of voters were undecided on a candidate. In that poll, Fedorchak got 32% of the support, Becker 25%, Mund 10%, Balazs 5% and Mohr less than 1%.

In the Democratic primary, there is:

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Trygve Hammer,

a former Marine and District 5 chair for the Democratic-NPL party who works as a career coach in Minot. Hammer served in Iraq, worked as a roughneck in the Bakken Oil Fields, was a high school teacher and a train conductor. He has said his life experiences are more similar to average North Dakotans compared to all the other candidates. His campaign also goes beyond winning the seat — it’s also about rebuilding the Dem-NPL party and making it a more competitive political force in the state.

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Roland Riemers,

a multi-time candidate for numerous elected offices in the state including Grand Forks County sheriff, Grand Forks School Board and several other statewide offices.

The candidates who win their party’s primary will move on to the November general election. The winner of the general election will represent the state in the House of Representatives, earn $172,000 a year and be up for election again in 2026.

More information about how to vote and sample ballots can be found on the North Dakota secretary of state’s website, vote.nd.gov.