Three-way Jamestown mayoral race spotlights housing, growth, taxes

Jamestown voters will decide on June 9 whether to keep Mayor Dwaine Heinrich, bring back former Mayor Katie Hemmer, or hand the job to first-time candidate Patrick Davis in a race that is already turning on housing, taxes and growth.

The clearest contrast so far comes from Hemmer, who is making a pitch built around more homes and more business activity. Her campaign says Jamestown should welcome growth in residential housing, retail and service, recreation and entertainment, and great-paying jobs. A campaign announcement also framed her run around housing, jobs and property-tax relief, a message aimed squarely at households feeling pressure from rising costs and the city’s need to keep pace with development.

Heinrich enters the race as the incumbent, first elected in 2018 and reelected in 2022. That gives voters a chance to weigh whether Jamestown should stay with the direction already in place or shift toward Hemmer’s more aggressive growth message. Davis adds a third option and keeps the race from being a simple rematch, but he is still seeking his first term, so the contest also carries a basic question of experience versus change.

The stakes are larger than personalities. Jamestown sits at the intersection of Interstate 94 and U.S. Highway 281 and serves as the county seat of Stutsman County, which lists a population of 21,593. In a city with that kind of regional pull, decisions on housing, infrastructure and property taxes ripple well beyond the mayor’s office. A mayor who pushes harder for new homes and commercial development could change how quickly Jamestown grows and how much pressure falls on existing streets, services and tax bills.

The race is also drawing more public attention because it revives an earlier chapter in local politics. Hemmer served as Jamestown mayor from 2010 to 2018, before Heinrich defeated then-incumbent Katie Andersen in 2018 and later won reelection. This time, the matchup gives voters a new version of an old rivalry, with a former mayor seeking a return and an incumbent defending his record.

Local forums are set for May 5 and May 7 at the North Dakota Farmers Union, 1415 12th Ave SE in Jamestown, giving residents two chances to compare the candidates before the June vote. For many households, the real question is no longer who is running, but which version of Jamestown they want to live with next.