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Traill County commissioners approve making state’s attorney an appointed position
Summary
In a 3-2 vote April 6, 2026, the Traill County Commission approved moving the state’s attorney from an elected office to the list of appointed offices after discussion about qualifications and legal constraints; Commission Chair Kurt Elliott cast the deciding vote.
The Traill County Commission voted April 6, 2026, to move the state’s attorney from an elected office to the county’s appointed-offices list, a change commissioners said is tied to concerns about required qualifications for the post. The special meeting began at 11:00 a.m. and concluded at 11:30 a.m.
Charlie Stock, the state’s attorney, told the commission that "the law does only state that the Sheriff cannot be appointed" and explained the push to place the state’s attorney among appointed offices was driven by qualification considerations. Commissioners said they were wary of creating future problems by keeping the state’s attorney elected while converting many other offices to appointment.
A motion to move the state’s attorney to the appointed-offices line was made by Commissioner Amb and seconded by Commissioner Nesvig. The vote was recorded as Commissioner Eblen: yes; Commissioner Amb: yes; Commissioner Young: no; Commissioner Nesvig: no. The tally was tied 2-2 until Commissioner Kurt Elliott, serving as commission chair, cast the deciding vote in favor, carrying the motion.
The commission also finalized the ballot question language that will appear on the primary election ballot during the same special meeting. The change to Article 6, Section 1, was recorded as moving the state’s attorney from line 3 to line 4 under appointed offices. The commission scheduled its regular meeting for April 7, 2026, at 8:00 a.m.
