| Election Name: | 2010 United States House of Representatives election in North Dakota |
| Country: | North Dakota |
| Type: | presidential |
| Ongoing: | no |
| Previous Election: | 2008 United States House of Representatives election in North Dakota |
| Previous Year: | 2008 |
| Next Election: | 2012 United States House of Representatives election in North Dakota |
| Next Year: | 2012 |
| Turnout: | 237,137 |
| Image1: | File:Rick Berg, official portrait, 112th Congress.jpg |
| Nominee1: | Rick Berg |
| Party1: | Republican Party (United States) |
| Popular Vote1: | 129,802 |
| Percentage1: | 54.7% |
| Nominee2: | Earl Pomeroy |
| Party2: | North Dakota Democratic-NPL Party |
| Popular Vote2: | 106,542 |
| Percentage2: | 44.9% |
| Map Size: | 250px |
| U.S. Representative | |
| Before Election: | Earl Pomeroy |
| Before Party: | North Dakota Democratic-NPL Party |
| After Election: | Rick Berg |
| After Party: | Republican Party (United States) |
The 2010 House election in North Dakota took place on November 2, 2010, to elect the state's at-large Representative to the United States House of Representatives. Representatives are elected for two-year terms; this election was for the 112th Congress from January 3, 2011, until January 3, 2013. North Dakota has one seat in the House, apportioned according to the 2000 United States census.
The election was held concurrently with the United States Senate elections of 2010 (including one in North Dakota), the United States House elections in other states and various state and local elections.
Despite Republican dominance at the presidential level in North Dakota, which has not voted for a Democratic presidential candidate since 1964, as well as state and local elections, Democrats achieved several consecutive victories in congressional elections in the state since the 1980s. Democrats had held the state's at-large House seat since 1981. From 1987 to 2011, North Dakota had a completely Democratic congressional delegation.
Since his first election in 1992, incumbent Democrat Earl Pomeroy had usually won reelection by comfortable margins. However, with Democrats fighting in a much tougher political environment in 2010, Republicans planned on putting forward a serious challenge.[1] Republicans running against him included state Public Service Commissioner Kevin Cramer, state Representative Rick Berg, and former University of Mary football coach Paul Schaffner. Pomeroy was likely more vulnerable than usual due to his support for the Democratic House Healthcare bill, which 64% of North Dakotans opposed, and President Barack Obama's declining job approval ratings in the state.[2]
| width='190' | Poll source | width='165' | Date(s)dministered | width='100' | Earl Pomeroy (D) | width='100' | Rick Berg (R) | width='100' | Other | width='100' | Undecided |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Public Opinion Strategies[3] † | October 24–25, 2010 | 42% | align=center | 51% | - | - | |||||
| Rasmussen Reports[4] | October 18–19, 2010 | 42% | align=center | 52% | 1% | 5% | |||||
| The Hill/ANGA[5] | October 16–19, 2010 | align=center | 45% | 44% | - | 9% | |||||
| Prairie Poll[6] | October 2010 | align=center | 44% | 34% | - | - | |||||
| Rasmussen Reports[7] | September 20–21, 2010 | 45% | align=center | 48% | 1% | 5% | |||||
| Garin-Hart-Yang[8] † | September 10–12, 2010 | align=center | 46% | 44% | - | - | |||||
| Rasmussen Reports[9] | August 10–11, 2010 | 44% | align=center | 53% | 1% | 3% | |||||
| Rasmussen Reports[10] | July 21, 2010 | 46% | align=center | 49% | 1% | 5% | |||||
| Rasmussen Reports[11] | June 15–16, 2010 | 44% | align=center | 51% | 1% | 5% | |||||
| Rasmussen Reports[12] | May 19, 2010 | 43% | align=center | 52% | 2% | 3% | |||||
| Rasmussen Reports[13] | April 20, 2010 | 45% | align=center | 49% | 2% | 4% | |||||
| Rasmussen Reports[14] | March 23–24, 2010 | 44% | align=center | 51% | 1% | 4% | |||||
| Rasmussen Reports[15] | February 9–10, 2010 | 40% | align=center | 46% | 3% | 11% | |||||
In the general election Berg unseated Pomeroy by a vote of 129,802 (55%) to 106,542 (45%) becoming the first Republican since 1980 to represent North Dakota's at-large congressional district.
Debates