Baesler leading in race for superintendent of public instruction Tuesday night

State Superintendent Kirsten Baesler, left, and Jason Heitkamp, right. (Contributed)

Kirsten Baesler is likely to serve a fourth term as North Dakota superintendent of public instruction, according to preliminary election results.

Roughly 57% of ballots were cast in Baesler's favor in early results. The Associated Press had not called the race as of 11:20 p.m. Tuesday.

"We've made so many great strides in K-12 education during the last 12 years, but the reason I ran again is that there's always more that we need to do for our students," Baesler said in a statement on election night. "My philosophy as state superintendent has been to strive for continuous improvement each and every day, for all students, and that will continue."

Challenger Jason Heitkamp, a former state senator, had about 42% of the vote.

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Baesler, who has held the office since 2013, focused much of her campaign on her track record in the position.

The Mandan resident has counted the creation of a teacher apprenticeship program, reducing the size of the Department of Public Instruction and creating an online school funding dashboard among her most significant accomplishments in the role.

She's also pledged to make progress on issues like student attendance, teacher retention and diversifying educational opportunities for students in her next term.

Heitkamp, a resident of Wyndmere, campaigned heavily on property tax relief. He argued the North Dakota Constitution says it's the state's responsibility to fund 100% of public education — and that if elected, he would hold the state accountable to that mandate.

Currently, the state covers about 70% of public education costs while local property taxes support another 23%, according to data published by the State Department of Public Instruction.

Baesler has said that the North Dakota Supreme Court has already taken cases related to this provision in the state constitution but never found that the state was required to fully fund public schools.

Heitkamp doesn't have a professional background in education but served in the state Senate from 2021-2022, is a former Richland County commissioner, and served on the Bottineau and Prairie Rose city councils. He's currently a truck driver and also has experience working as a financial adviser, farmer and emergency medical technician, among other jobs.

Heitkamp also promised to reform public education by simplifying curriculum to focus on fundamentals like math, reading, writing, physical education and civics.

The superintendent doesn't control the curriculum of public schools.

Superintendent of public instruction is a nonpartisan position, though candidates can receive letters of support from political parties.

This is the first election cycle in which Baesler did not receive support from the North Dakota Republican Party.

At the NDGOP state convention in April, delegates instead voted overwhelmingly to back Jim Bartlett, a former engineering instructor and advocate of homeschooling who campaigned on a far-right, faith-heavy platform. Bartlett did not advance to the general election.

Heitkamp didn't seek letters of support from either party.