David Dean Andahl (October 30, 1964 – October 5, 2020) was an American politician, rancher, land developer and driver. In the 2020 election, Andahl defeated longtime incumbent

Jeff Delzer Jeffrey W. Delzer (born September 1, 1959) is an American politician in the state of North Dakota. He is a member of the North Dakota House of Representatives The North Dakota House of Representatives is the lower house of the North Dakota Le ...

in the Republican primary for a seat in the

North Dakota House of Representatives The North Dakota House of Representatives is the lower house of the North Dakota Legislative Assembly and is larger than the North Dakota Senate. North Dakota is divided into between 40 and 54 legislative districts apportioned by population as d ...

, but died a month before the November general election due to complications from

COVID-19 Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by a virus, the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The first known case was identified in Wuhan, China, in December 2019. The disease quickly ...

during the

COVID-19 pandemic in North Dakota The COVID-19 pandemic in North Dakota is an ongoing viral pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), a novel infectious disease caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The state reported its first case on M ...

, twenty five days short from his 56th birthday. Andahl remained on the ballot and was elected posthumously.

Early life and education

Andahl was born on October 30, 1964, in Bismarck, North Dakota, to Ronald and Patricia Andahl and graduated from Century High School. He received his associates degree from

Bismarck State College Bismarck State College (BSC) is a public college in Bismarck, North Dakota. It is the third largest college in the North Dakota University System with 3,781 students as of September 2016. Established in 1939, it is a comprehensive community c ...

and studied animal science at

North Dakota State University North Dakota State University (NDSU, formally North Dakota State University of Agriculture and Applied Sciences) is a public land-grant research university in Fargo, North Dakota. It was founded as North Dakota Agricultural College in 1890 as t ...

Career

He was a farmer, contractor and rancher. Andahl spent sixteen years on the

Burleigh County Burleigh County is a county in the U.S. state of North Dakota. As of the 2020 census, the population was 98,458, making it the second-most populous county in North Dakota. Its county seat is Bismarck, the state capital. The county was named fo ...

Planning and Zoning Commission, and chaired it for eight years. A

Republican Republican can refer to: Political ideology * An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law. ** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or agains ...

, he was a part of the

Donald Trump 2020 presidential campaign Incumbent Republican Donald Trump led an unsuccessful campaign for the 2020 United States presidential election. He was inaugurated for his first term on January 20, 2017, and officially announced his reelection campaign on June 18, 2019. Do ...

2020 North Dakota House election

In the 2020 election, Andahl was a candidate for the

. In the Republican primary, Andahl defeated

. North Dakota's

Governor A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political ...

Doug Burgum Douglas James Burgum (born August 1, 1956) is an American entrepreneur, philanthropist, and politician serving as the 33rd governor of North Dakota since 2016. He is a member of the Republican Party. Burgum was born and raised in the small to ...

, and junior Senator

Kevin Cramer Kevin John Cramer (born January 21, 1961) is an American politician who has served as the junior United States senator for North Dakota since 2019. A member of the Republican Party, he represented North Dakota's at-large congressional distri ...

both endorsed his run for the state house. In October 2020, Andahl contracted COVID-19 and died from its complications at the age of 55. Following Andahl's death,

North Dakota Attorney General The North Dakota Attorney General is the chief legal officer of the North Dakota state government. The Attorney General's office represents the state government in court cases and issues opinions of points of law upon request. Drew Wrigley was app ...

Wayne Stenehjem Wayne Stenehjem ( ; February 5, 1953 – January 28, 2022) was an American lawyer and politician from the U.S. state of North Dakota. He was the Attorney General of the state, serving from December 15, 2000 until his death. He sought the Republi ...

issued an opinion stating that if a candidate wins an election posthumously, the result would be a vacancy and state law gives the choice of his replacement to the district's chapter of the Republican Party. On November 4, Governor

appointed Wade Boeshans to the seat, arguing that since no other North Dakota law applied to the situation, he was empowered to make an appointment by a provision of the North Dakota state constitution stating that the governor "may fill a vacancy in any office by appointment if no other method is provided by this constitution or by law". The

North Dakota Legislative Assembly The North Dakota Legislative Assembly is the state legislature of the U.S. state of North Dakota. The Legislative Assembly consists of two chambers, the lower North Dakota House of Representatives, with 94 representatives, and the upper North ...

sued to block the appointment, arguing that the Governor had exceeded his authority; the legislature instead appointed incumbent

to the seat. , the dispute between the legislature and governor was being considered by the

North Dakota Supreme Court The North Dakota Supreme Court is the highest court of law in the state of North Dakota. The Court rules on questions of law in appeals from the state's district courts. Each of the five justices are elected on a no-party ballot for ten year te ...

. On November 24, 2020, the North Dakota Supreme Court ruled that Burgum does not have the authority to appoint a person to fill the vacant house seat.Court: North Dakota governor can't fill dead candidate seat
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References

1964 births 2020 deaths 20th-century American politicians 21st-century American politicians Bismarck State College alumni Donald Trump 2020 presidential campaign Deaths from the COVID-19 pandemic in North Dakota Farmers from North Dakota Politicians elected posthumously Politicians from Bismarck, North Dakota Republican Party members of the North Dakota House of Representatives North Dakota State University alumni {{NorthDakota-politician-stub