Dick Anderson

GRANVILLE – The District 6 Republican Executive Committee voted Sunday, Nov. 16, in Granville to censure one of its legislators over his vote on a gay marriage resolution in the 2025 legislative session, according to a release from the committee Wednesday, Nov. 19.

Rep. Dick Anderson, R-Willow City, responded he doesn’t consider his censure to be a major concern. He and then District 6 representative Paul Thomas, now a senator, also were censured in 2021 for voting with the majority in expelling Rep. Luke Simons, R-Dickinson, after he was accused of a pattern of sexual harassment.

The District 6 party did not endorse Thomas and Anderson in the 2024 election cycle. Instead, they successfully campaigned with Dan Vollmer, a new House candidate, to defeat the endorsed candidates in the Republican primary.

Anderson said he did not find it appropriate to vote for a resolution urging the U.S. Supreme Court to restore the definition of marriage as a union between one man and one woman.

“It’s above my pay grade to be judging other people like that and I know the federal government wants nothing to do with it anymore. The Supreme Court didn’t even want to hear the case,” Anderson said.

The resolution also called for restoring the enforcement of all laws pertaining to marriage to the states. The North Dakota House adopted the resolution 52-40 . The state Senate rejected it in an verification vote.

The District 6 committee stated in its release that Anderson was censured for violating the Republican Party platform by voting against traditional marriage as presented in House Concurrent Resolution 3013.

The committee noted the North Dakota GOP’s platform states, “Legislators should lead through personal moral integrity, and should consider this Platform responsibly before supporting or opposing legislation.”

In the release, committee member Shawn Kramer, who brought forward the censure, cited Anderson’s blatant disregard for the party platform and his violation of Republican Party values.

The motion to censure originally had been made in April but had been tabled at that time to allow Anderson time to respond, the committee reported. Anderson said he chose not to attend Sunday’s meeting.

Censure serves as a reprimand but does not carry legal consequences or remove an individual from their position. “When Republican Politicians from the District stray from the principles of the Republican platform, in their votes or actions, an official censure is one of the few tools districts have to remind politicians of the foundational principles that are represented by the R by their name on the ballot,” the committee stated.

Anderson said his priority as a legislator is not divisive social issues but legislation beneficial to the state, including work being done with data centers and enhanced oil recovery and support for Dakota College at Bottineau.

Anderson has served District 6 in the House of Representatives since 2011.