North Dakota lawmaker dies at 54 following cancer battle

BISMARCK, N.D. (AP) — A lawmaker who was North Dakota’s youngest state senator when he was elected at 24 has died at 54, a year after he began treatment for cancer.

Republican state Rep. Randy Schobinger, of Minot, died Tuesday in Delano, Tenn., according to an obituary. He had begun treatment for esophageal cancer last August, according to the Minot Daily News.

Schobinger campaigned in an aging 1972 Toyota for which he paid $100 and he stenciled with “Vote Schobinger” before winning election. He served as a state senator from 1994 to 2006, and ran unsuccessfully for state treasurer in 1996 and 2000. His youngest-senator claim was overtaken in 2004 by Nick Hacker, who won a North Dakota Senate seat at 22.

In 2016, Schobinger was first elected to the state House, where he served on the budget-writing Appropriations Committee.

He did not seek reelection to a third term this year. District Republicans will appoint someone to serve out his term through November, district GOP chairman Jay Lundeen said.

Schobinger, who also worked as an insurance agent, served the community well for many years and was a tenacious person who worked hard to get elected, Lundeen said.

Republican House Majority Leader Mike Lefor called him a good man, a hard worker and a great debater.

North Dakota’s biennial Legislature is set to convene in January 2025.