Frequently Asked Questions
Why the age of 80 and not any other age?
Why not have a cognitive test instead?
Are any other positions currently age-limited? Do any other states do this?
Is this age limit measure just a stalking horse for term limits?
Both issues are overwhelmingly popular with citizens. While many, if not nearly all, of our supporters also back term limits, that is a separate issue.
Is this measure targeting specific politicians in North Dakota?
In 1995, the US Supreme Court issued a close, 5-4 decision ruling term limits illegal. So is this age limit proposal constitutional?
Could this be seen as a push to enact age discrimination in ND? Would it lead to disqualification of others from Congress, such as based upon race, gender, sexual orientation, religion, or other unrelated characteristics?
If your measure applied to presidential candidates it would limit both Biden and Trump in 2024. If 80 is the upper age for Congress shouldn't it also apply to the presidency?
Is this an out-of-state group taking advantage of ND's initiative system?
Retire Congress North Dakota consists of a sponsoring committee, with notarized, sworn affidavits, signed by North Dakota citizens from across the state in support of our issue. We have accepted support from U.S. Term Limits, a national nonprofit that is focused on term limits and similar issues.
Our initiative process in North Dakota isn’t lax or easy. We commonly see 1 or 2 citizen initiated ballot questions on the ballot. States with much more expensive systems like California and Florida have many more initiated ballot questions. Letting the citizens vote on issues that the legislature refuses to address isn’t taking advantage of our system – it’s giving the people a voice.
Our committee is all North Dakota residents, we’re getting signatures from North Dakota voters, and only North Dakota voters will be able to vote on the measure. We’re happy to have the funding support from U.S. Term Limits. Initiatives are very expensive. We happily accept donations from in-state and out of state donors.