North Dakota Becomes First State to Enact Age Limits on Federal LawmakersOlivia Rondeau 12 Jun 2024
North Dakota voters have approved a measure to become the first state to set a maximum age for federal representatives, though lawmakers expect it to be challenged in court.
The ballot measure will cap the age of congressional representatives and senators from the state at 80 and is set to go into effect immediately after passing, which it did on Tuesday.
Voters favored the age limit by a large margin, with 61 percent voting “yes” and just 39 percent voting “no,” the Associated Press reported.
The state’s three current federal lawmakers are safe from the cut-off, as their ages range from 47 to 67.
While the measure passed easily, some legal experts predict it will be a test case for revisiting the 1995 U.S. Supreme Court ruling against congressional term limits. U.S. Term Limits, Inc. v. Thornton established that states “cannot impose additional restrictions, such as term limits, on its representatives in the federal government beyond those provided by the Constitution.”
A state legislative panel has already allocated $1 million to fight for the measure in court if the challenge arises.
Sen. Kevin Cramer (R-ND), 63, opposes the age limit because he believes votes should have options.
“To limit those decisions arbitrarily just doesn’t make sense to me,” he told the outlet.
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https://www.breitbart.com/politics/2024/06/12/north-dakota-becomes-first-state-to-enact-age-limits-on-federal-lawmakers/
