Special Board Election

Medium

The NDPERS Board is seeking one active member to fill a vacancy and complete an unexpired term. The elected member’s term will end on June 30, 2029.

The newly elected member can attend the monthly meeting remotely. The time spent in performing duties as a board member may not be charged against any employee's accumulated annual or any other type of leave, as stated in ND Century Code section 54-52-03.4.

How do I become a candidate?

Review the list of eligibility requirements and file the original copy of your Nomination Petition Form, with the necessary active member signatures, by 4 pm CT, on Thursday, February 26, at the NDPERS office. Faxed or emailed petitions are not sufficient. Must be original, wet-ink signatures. Electronic signatures are not considered valid. 

Eligibility Requirements

Any active member participating in any of the NDPERS retirement plans is eligible to serve as an elected member of the NDPERS Board. However, the ND Century Code restricts elected members to one per agency. 

Currently, the Department of Agriculture and the North Dakota Insurance & Securities Department have members that serve on the Board. Therefore, if you are employed by either of these agencies, you are not eligible to be a candidate in the upcoming election.

The NDPERS retirement plans include:

Filing a Nomination Petition 

Steps and Requirements

STEP 1: Download and print the Nomination Petition Form to collect your signatures. Candidates may reproduce this form, at their own expense, without requesting additional copies from NDPERS.

STEP 2: Candidates must certify and sign the header of the Nomination Petition Form.

STEP 3: Candidates must obtain the signatures of at least 100 active eligible NDPERS members on the Nomination Petition Form. Candidates are encouraged to collect more than 100 signatures to avoid an insufficient number of valid signatures. 

  • All filed petitions must have original signatures, rather than written (printed) names only, from active participating members in the NDPERS retirement plans.
  • Faxed, scanned, and emailed copies are not valid.
  • Printed copies with electronic signatures are not valid.

STEP 4: Candidates must file the original Nomination Petition Form with the NDPERS office by 4 pm CT on Thursday, February 26.

STEP 5: Candidates should consider submitting a biography and headshot.

  • You may email a short biography (not to exceed 200 words) and a personal headshot (.jpeg) for voters.
  • The absence of a photo or short biography will not invalidate your eligibility.

When will I know if I'm a candidate?

You will be notified by email of the validation of your candidacy during the week of March 2, 2026.

How do I withdraw my nomination?

You may withdraw your nomination by providing written notice to NDPERS no later than one week from when you file your nomination petition.

Additional Information

Elections

The election will be held electronically through Member Self Service (MSS) starting on March 9 and ending on March 31, 2026.

Who is eligible to vote? 

ND Administrative Code 71-01-02-02 states:

  1. An active employee, eligible to serve as an elected member of the board in accordance with subsection 4 of North Dakota Century Code section 54-52-03, is eligible to cast one vote for each active member vacancy on the retirement board.
  2. An individual participating in the uniform group insurance program, the deferred compensation plan for public employees, or the pretax benefits program but not in the retirement system is ineligible to cast votes in retirement board elections.

Questions?