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The race for the North Dakota Public Service Commission is heating up as both incumbents announced their 2026 campaigns amid a growing debate over utility rates, according to from the North Dakota Monitor.
Commissioner Sheri Haugen-Hoffart is seeking a full six-year term, while Jill Kringstad—who was appointed last year to fill the seat vacated by Congresswoman Julie Fedorchak—will run for the remaining two years of that term. Deven Styczynski of Enderlin, who has criticized recent utility rate hikes as “ludicrous,” is also planning to run. All three individuals are Republicans.
The PSC is a powerful three-person board that oversees pipeline permits, wind turbine placement, and the rates you pay for electricity. Styczynski points to a pending 10% rate increase for Xcel Energy customers, but Haugen-Hoffart and Kringstad argue North Dakota still maintains the lowest electricity rates in the nation.
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