On June 14, Governor Armstrong was censured by state leaders of the ND Republican Party—his own political party—for vetoing Senate Bill 2307, the recent book ban bill. This censure means bills like SB 2307 are not done and our work at Right to Read ND must continue in earnest.

The wildest part of the resolution is that it doesn’t even mention books or libraries. The resolution says the focus of the bill was to “safeguard children from dangerous, irreversible medical interventions and harmful ideologies that threaten their health, identity, and development.”

This is not how North Dakotans saw the bill. They overwhelmingly saw it as lawmakers taking away their freedom to access information at their libraries. Hundreds of North Dakotans submitted testimony opposing the bill; over 1,000 showed up in person on a cold day in March to read outside their local libraries in opposition to the bill; and over 2,200 people took our action alert urging the Governor to veto the bill.

And we’re so thankful he did. By vetoing this bill, Governor Armstrong protected our First Amendment rights, curtailed attacks on our librarians, supported limited government, and affirmed that North Dakotans can parent their own kids at the library. Thank you, Governor Armstrong.

We know the fight is not done. This vote shows that a majority of those in the ND Republican Party’s leadership want to revisit this issue in the 2027 Legislative Session, no matter how unpopular it is with North Dakotans. We will be ready for that fight when it comes. Join us at righttoreadnd.org/join-us.

Mariah Ralston and Randi Monley, Right to Read ND co-chairs

Right to Read ND is a nonpartisan group of North Dakotans who have come together in response to the growing movement to limit access to books and materials in our libraries and schools.