Editing Fargo, North Dakota (section)

==Government==
{{further|List of mayors of Fargo, North Dakota}}
[[File:Fargo_City_Hall;_May_8,_2024.png|thumb|Fargo City Hall]]

Fargo uses the [[city commission]] style of local government. Four commissioners and a mayor are elected via [[approval voting]]. Fargo became the first city in the U.S. to use approval voting for elections in 2018.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://kfgo.com/news/articles/2018/nov/07/fargo-to-become-first-city-in-us-to-use-approval-voting/ |title=Fargo to become first city in U.S. to use approval voting |access-date=November 10, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181111093247/https://kfgo.com/news/articles/2018/nov/07/fargo-to-become-first-city-in-us-to-use-approval-voting/ |archive-date=November 11, 2018 |url-status=dead}}</ref> The Fargo City Commission meets every two weeks in its chambers above the [[Fargo Civic Center]]. The meetings are broadcast on a [[Government-access television]] (GATV) cable channel.

In 2017, there was an attempt to [[recall election|recall]] City Commissioner Dave Piepkorn by a group who argued his constant expressing of concern over [[refugee]] resettlement in the city was a xenophobic [[dog-whistle politics|dog-whistle]] meant to rile up anti-refugee sentiment in the community.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.inforum.com/news/4232812-group-trying-recall-fargo-commissioner-piepkorn-over-his-refugee-stance-submits|title=Group trying to recall Fargo Commissioner Piepkorn over his refugee stance submits petition for state review|first=Archie  |last=Ingersoll|website=INFORUM|date=March 11, 2017}}</ref> While the group says it did reach the required number of signatures, it ultimately chose not to submit them because they did not know how many signatures would be eliminated in the review process, and Commissioner Piepkorn threatened to obtain the list of signers via [[Freedom of Information Act (United States)|FOIA request]], which was interpreted as a political threat by the group.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://apnews.com/article/832f3c527e7a477bb33d2003e9ad10bb|title=Refugee backers drop effort to recall Fargo commissioner|date=May 12, 2017|website=AP NEWS}}</ref>

Fargo was historically a Republican-leaning area. As recently as the 2004 presidential election, George W. Bush carried Fargo as well as the rest of Cass County with nearly 60 percent of the vote in both areas. Fargo has become more politically diverse and competitive. Since 2008, no Republican presidential candidate has received over 50% of the vote in Cass County. In 2008, Democratic candidate Barack Obama won the majority of votes in Cass County,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://web.apps.state.nd.us/sec/emspublic/gp/electionresultssearch.htm?showMap=N&electionDate=11042008&searchType=COUNTY&countyNo=9&cmd=Search|publisher=[[North Dakota Secretary of State]]|title=Official Election Results – Cass County|access-date=October 4, 2010|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110728110911/http://web.apps.state.nd.us/sec/emspublic/gp/electionresultssearch.htm?showMap=N&electionDate=11042008&searchType=COUNTY&countyNo=9&cmd=Search|archive-date=July 28, 2011}}</ref> with a voting percentage very close to the percentage Obama received in the entire nation, while John McCain won the majority of votes in North Dakota. Mitt Romney's winning margin in 2012 over Barack Obama in Cass County was 49.9% to 47%<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.casscountynd.gov/home/showdocument?id=398|title=Cass County General Election|date=November 6, 2012|website=Casscountynd.gov|access-date=February 2, 2022}}</ref> while Donald Trump received 49.3% of votes in 2016 compared to 38.8% against Hillary Clinton and 11.9% for third-party candidates.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://results.sos.nd.gov/resultsSW.aspx?type=CTYALL&map=CTY&cty=09&name=Cass|title=Secretary of State – Election Night Results – November 8th, 2016|website=results.sos.nd.gov}}</ref> In 2018, Democratic Senator Heidi Heitkamp achieved a 14-point lead in Eastern North Dakota even though the state as a whole soundly elected Republican [[Kevin Cramer]].