Dori Hauck has been selected by the District 36 Republicans District Committee to replace former state Rep. Luke Simons after he was expelled from the House earlier this month.
The committee announced Hauck's selection on Friday, March 12.
Hauck, along with her husband, Doug, own and operate a ranch in rural Richardton, N.D. She was elected secretary and treasurer for the District 36 Republicans in 2012, and continues to hold that position.
Simons told The Dickinson Press Thursday morning, March 11, that he will not be pursuing further legal action to regain his seat in the North Dakota House of Representatives, but did not rule out the potential future run for public office.
Simons is the first legislator in state history to be expelled due to allegations of sexual harassment from reports made by female legislators, legislative employees and legal council members. With the presence of his attorney, Lynn Boughey, of Mandan, Simons stressed that the effects of the sexual harassment allegations has taken a toll on his family and the legal costs are too costly to move forward.
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“He who speaks his mind should ride a fast horse and always keep one foot in the stirrup. That’s really the truth of it, ” Simons said. “Every one of these people that made these allegations, I thought we were friends and it turns out political enemies are political enemies.”
His replacement, Hauck, will represent District 36 with a "conservative approach," said John Enderle, chairman of the District 36 Republicans.
"She'll be a good fit, she has been our secretary and treasurer for years she'll do a fine job," Enderle said. "I still believe this whole thing was an atrocity and will play out in an ugly way. This is only the beginning and it's not going to be pleasant from here either."
As to Hauck's political future, Enderle said that she has the same views as Simons in a lot of respect.
"Dori will do a wonderful job...She's her own person obviously, but she's a conservative," he said. "Support for Luke was vast and I'm still getting phone calls from people mad about what happened. The constituents of District 36 elected Luke and stood by him through this whole ugly process. Everybody is extremely disappointed in how this played out."
Though Simons was expelled from the House, he was not impeached and therefore could still potentially run for office in the future, he said.
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