Representative Earl Ralph Pomeroy

Earl Ralph Pomeroy III (born September 2, 1952) is an American lawyer and politician who served as the U.S. Representative for North Dakota’s at-large congressional district from January 3, 1993, to January 3, 2011. A member of the North Dakota Democratic–Nonpartisan League (Democratic-NPL) Party and of the national Democratic Party, he represented North Dakota in the United States House of Representatives for nine consecutive terms during a significant period in American political history, participating actively in the legislative process and representing the interests of his constituents. As of 2025, he is the last Democrat to have represented North Dakota in the U.S. House of Representatives.

Pomeroy was born in Valley City, in Barnes County in eastern North Dakota. He attended Valley City State University, where he was initiated as a member of the Tau Kappa Epsilon fraternity. He later transferred to the University of North Dakota in Grand Forks, where he earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in political science. Following his undergraduate studies, he pursued graduate research in legal history at Durham University in England, broadening his academic and international perspective before returning to his home state. Pomeroy then enrolled in the University of North Dakota School of Law, receiving his Juris Doctor degree in 1979. In recognition of his public service and professional accomplishments, the University of North Dakota awarded him an honorary Doctor of Letters degree in 2011.

After completing his legal education, Pomeroy embarked on a career in public service and law in North Dakota. He was elected to the North Dakota House of Representatives in 1980, marking his entry into elective office. In 1985, he became North Dakota Insurance Commissioner, a statewide office he held until 1992. In that role, he oversaw regulation of the insurance industry in the state, gaining experience in consumer protection, health and life insurance policy, and regulatory oversight that would later inform his work on health care and social insurance issues in Congress.

Pomeroy was first elected to the U.S. House of Representatives in the 1992 election and took office on January 3, 1993, as the at-large Representative from North Dakota. Over the course of nine terms, from 1993 to 2011, he contributed to the legislative process on a wide range of issues, including agriculture, health care, trade, and social insurance. In his early campaigns, he did not match the large victory margins of North Dakota’s Democratic U.S. Senators, Kent Conrad and Byron Dorgan; until 2004 he never won more than 57 percent of the vote. His electoral strength grew over time, and in 2004 he was reelected with almost 60 percent of the vote. In 2006 he faced Republican Matthew Mechtel in the general election and was easily reelected to his eighth term, receiving 65.68 percent of the vote, the largest percentage of his congressional career. In 2008, he again easily retained his seat, defeating Republican challenger Duane Sand.

During his congressional service, Pomeroy held assignments on several key House committees. He served on the Committee on Agriculture, including the Subcommittee on Conservation, Credit, Energy, and Research and the Subcommittee on General Farm Commodities and Risk Management, where he worked on matters affecting North Dakota’s agricultural economy and rural communities. He also served on the influential Committee on Ways and Means, with subcommittee assignments on Trade, Health, and Social Security. He chaired the Subcommittee on Social Security, where he played a prominent role in debates over the long-term solvency and structure of the Social Security system. In addition, he served as co-chair of the bipartisan Rural Health Care Coalition, reflecting his focus on access to medical services in sparsely populated areas, and he was a member of the Blue Dog Coalition, a group of fiscally moderate and conservative House Democrats.

Pomeroy’s voting record and public statements placed him at the center of major national policy debates of his era. Although he voted in 2002 to authorize the use of military force in Iraq, he later became increasingly critical of the conduct and continuation of the war. In February 2007, he supported the House resolution opposing President George W. Bush’s troop surge plan and delivered a floor speech emphasizing Congress’s responsibility to ensure that military deployments were sustainable and that missions had a reasonable chance of success. He argued that Congress must not “sit quietly by while additional plans are cooked up in Washington whose only certainty is to accelerate the loss of American lives, compound the already severe strain on our military capabilities, and accelerate the burn rate of American dollars spent in Iraq,” warning that without a political settlement among Iraqi factions, additional U.S. troops were unlikely to secure a lasting peace.

Health care policy was another central focus of Pomeroy’s congressional career. He voted for the Affordable Health Care for America Act in November 2009, acknowledging that the legislation was “far from perfect,” but asserting that “so is our present system,” and arguing that reform was necessary to address coverage gaps and rising costs. He strongly supported legislation allowing parents to deduct adoption expenses they incurred, and on the day of the vote he brought his daughter, whom he and his wife had adopted from South Korea, onto the House floor to underscore the personal significance of the measure and the importance of encouraging adoption through the tax code.

Pomeroy’s tenure in Congress ended following the 2010 election. He was defeated by Republican state representative Rick Berg, marking the first time in 30 years that North Dakota’s at-large House seat would be held by a Republican. Analysts and commentators widely attributed his defeat in part to his vote for health care reform, which was controversial among many North Dakota voters at the time. His departure from office on January 3, 2011, concluded 18 years of continuous service in the U.S. House of Representatives.

Following his congressional career, Pomeroy continued his work in law and public policy. He became senior counsel in the Washington, D.C., office of the law firm Alston & Bird, where he advises clients on matters related to his areas of legislative expertise, including health care, insurance, tax, and retirement policy. From this position, he has remained engaged in national policy discussions, drawing on his long experience as a state legislator, statewide official, and member of Congress.