A 55-year-old rancher in won the race for the state House of Representatives sweat for the eight district in North Dakota—one month after passing away from COVID-19.
David Andahl, running on a Republican ticket, was a cattle rancher and land developer. However, after contracting COVID-19, he passed away after four days in hospital. Since early voting began weeks before his death, his name was left on the ballot. Now, the state’s Republicans must choose his replacement via a committee, according to the North Dakota attorney general—though voters may still call for a special election if they choose.
The state AG cited the “American rule” were pressed about Andahl’s replacement, which holds that "the purpose of an election is to carry out the will of the people," and says that dismissing the votes for a deceased candidate would "frustrate the popular will" and ignore the voice of qualified electors.
In a 1999 AGO opinion in Washington State, the American Rule was defined as follows:
“(1) the purpose of an election is to carry out the will of the people; (2) votes for a deceased or disqualified candidate represent a choice by qualified voters [4] among the options presented on the ballot; (3) to disregard such votes, especially when they constitute a majority or plurality of the voters, is to frustrate the popular will; so therefore (4) votes for deceased and disqualified candidates should be counted like any other votes, and if the ‘candidate’ in question would have won the election, the result is a vacancy in the office.”
Andahl is not the first politician to get elected following his death. Missouri Senator Mel Carnahaan, Tracy City Mayor Carl Geary, Winfield Mayor Harry Stonebraker and California Senator Jenny Oropeza have all won elections after their deaths.
