Voting Leave Requirements in North Dakota
At a glance
| Governing law | N.D. Cent. Code § 16.1-01-02.1 (state-policy encouragement; no mandate) |
|---|---|
| Eligible workers and elections | No enforceable right; the state encourages employers to let a qualified voter be absent to vote at statewide special, primary, or general elections (§ 16.1-01-02.1) |
| Outside-work-hours test | Encouragement is framed for when the employee's regular work schedule conflicts with voting while polls are open (§ 16.1-01-02.1) |
| Time-off amount | None required; any program and its length are left to the employer (§ 16.1-01-02.1) |
| Paid or unpaid | No pay required; the statute encourages absence, not paid absence (§ 16.1-01-02.1) |
| When leave is taken | Left entirely to any voluntary employer program (§ 16.1-01-02.1) |
| Employee notice and employer posting | No statutory employee-notice or employer-posting duty |
| Protection and penalties | No enforceable right, penalty, or remedy; the provision is a policy encouragement only (§ 16.1-01-02.1) |
An encouragement, not a requirement
North Dakota is unusual: it has a voting-time statute, but the statute does not require anything. Section 16.1-01-02.1 states that "it is the policy of this state to encourage voting," and "to this end, employers are encouraged to establish a program" to grant a qualified-voter employee time to be absent to vote when the employee's regular work schedule conflicts with polling hours.
That is the whole operative rule. Because employers are only "encouraged," the chip table above reads as no required amount of time, no required pay, and no penalty. An employer that establishes a generous voting-time program and an employer that does none are both complying with the statute, which asks and does not command.
What an employee actually has
In practice, a North Dakota employee who needs to vote relies on the employer's own policy, any contract or handbook, early voting, or a mail ballot. The state's encouragement gives an employer a reason to be accommodating but gives the employee no enforceable right to demand paid or unpaid leave, to insist on a particular window, or to recover anything if leave is refused.
The encouragement is aimed at statewide special, primary, and general elections and at the situation where a work schedule leaves no time to vote while the polls are open. Even there, it remains a request to employers, not a duty.
What trips people up
Seeing a statute on the books can suggest a right exists. Read the verb: the section "encourages," it does not "require." North Dakota has chosen a voluntary approach rather than the mandatory two-hour or "sufficient time" rules used by many other states.
Common questions
Does North Dakota law give me a right to time off to vote?
No. The statute encourages employers to allow voting time but does not require it.
Does my employer have to pay me for voting time?
No. There is no pay requirement, because there is no required leave in the first place.
Can my employer be penalized for refusing?
No. The provision is a policy statement with no penalty or remedy attached.
Statutes and sources
- N.D. Cent. Code § 16.1-01-02.1: the state-policy encouragement to employers to establish a voluntary program granting voting time, with no mandate, pay requirement, or penalty — official Century Code text (accessed July 13, 2026).
Source links
Every statute quoted above, linked, with the date we checked it.
What does North Dakota law mean for your facts?
You just read the general rule. Ask your own question and see which parts of current North Dakota law apply to your situation, with citations you can check.
Opens in Ezel Pro.
- Starts from the statutes this survey is built on
- Cites every source it relies on, so you can verify it
- Chat, drafting and research in one workspace