Photo: afiler from Seattle (ex-Minneapolis) · CC BY-SA 2.0How is Lakota run?
Lakota’s city government spent $1.1 million on day-to-day services in the year to December 31, 2023, about $1,543 per resident. These are Census Bureau estimates: Lakota didn’t report its figures, so this page shows them without comparisons.
What stands out about how Lakota is run
Read from the city’s budget and official records.
About $1,543 per resident a year, or $4.23 a day
Day-to-day services only (a Census Bureau estimate). The biggest line: parks & libraries, at 40%.
Thank you for being a neighbor
Lakota didn’t report all of its 2023 figures to the Census Bureau, so most of these numbers are the Bureau’s estimates.
No comparison or trend for Lakota yet
Every year of Lakota’s figures is a Census Bureau estimate: the city reported none of its dollars for 2022–2023. Estimates are shown above, labeled, but never ranked against places that reported or drawn as a trend.
How Town Hall compares budgets →The typical homeowner pays $1,571 a year
Every local property tax on the home: town, schools and county. About 0.94% of the home’s value, vs 0.99% across North Dakota.
Typical yearly bill next door and statewide
The Housing page’s calculator splits a monthly payment into loan, tax and insurance at Lakota’s rate.
Can I afford it? →The median bill homeowners report to the Census survey (bills of $10,000+ are reported as “$10,000+”). The effective rate is that bill ÷ the median home value: a rough guide, not the official tax rate. In a town this small the estimate has a wide margin.
Tax bills are one input to Lakota’s Cost of living grade. Cost of living in Lakota →
Who’s in charge in Lakota
Names change after every election, so we link to the source that keeps them current.
Lakota’s meeting calendar isn’t in our feed yet. The city posts agendas and minutes on lakota-nd.com ↗.
One full-time city employee for every 172 residents
On the payroll in March 2022, from the Census Bureau’s Annual Survey of Public Employment & Payroll (a Census estimate). Residents: the Census population in the 2023 finance file (689).
By department full-time, plus part-time, March 2022
The Census reports one month’s payroll (March); yearly figures are that month × 12, an estimate. Part-timers count half in the bar lengths.
Lakota Public School District 66
Lakota’s K–12 school district, shared with Brocket, Clara Township, Dodds Township, Lakota Township, Bartlett Township and more. It’s its own government, with a budget separate from the town’s.
Of the $17,663 per pupil, $8,707 goes to the classroom (teachers, aides, supplies); the rest to buses, buildings, counselors and administration. Building projects and debt payments aren’t in the per-pupil figure.
North Dakota districts overall: 40% local, 46% state, 14% federal.
School year 2023–24. Census Bureau school finance survey.
Lakota’s votes are counted by county
North Dakota reports official results by county and precinct, not by city, so there are no official results for Lakota alone, and we don’t estimate them. These are Nelson County’s results.
Donald J TrumpRepublican64.8%1,141 votes
Kamala D HarrisDemocrat32.9%580 votesOthers: 2.3% (40 votes).
Most votes in Nelson County: Donald J Trump
North Dakota: Trump 67.0%, Harris 30.5%
100% of Lakota lies in Nelson County. Every 2024 race in Nelson County is on the county’s page.
Nelson County’s 2024 results →Official 2024 general election returns, as certified (MIT Election Data + Science Lab). Percentages are of votes for candidates; blank and spoiled ballots aren’t counted. Candidates are listed by votes, and party colors are neutral on purpose.
Portraits: Kamala D Harris: official vice-presidential portrait, Lawrence Jackson, The White House, 2021; Donald J Trump: official portrait, Shealah Craighead, The White House, 2017. All are U.S. government works in the public domain. A race shows photos only when every candidate has an official portrait; otherwise every candidate in it gets initials.
From town hall to Washington
Every level of government that speaks for Lakota.
- 1Your cityMayor & councilOfficials: lakota-nd.com ↗
- 2North Dakota HouseState representatives
- 3North Dakota SenateState senator
- 4GovernorStatewide
- 5U.S. HouseYour representative in Congress
- 6U.S. SenateBoth represent all of North Dakota
Democrat · Republican · other or independent. Tap a name for their official page.
Reach Lakota’s government
The official site has phone numbers, hours and forms. Neighbors add the rest to the Handbook.
Questions about Lakota’s government
How much does Lakota spend per resident?
About $1,543 per resident on day-to-day services in the year to December 31, 2023, a Census Bureau estimate (Lakota didn’t report its figures). With building projects and interest, the whole budget was about $2.7 million.
What is the property tax rate in Lakota?
Homeowners report a typical bill of $1,571 a year (Census ACS, 2020–24), about 0.94% of the typical home’s value, vs 0.99% across North Dakota. For the official rate per $1,000 of assessed value, see lakota-nd.com.
Who runs Lakota’s government?
See lakota-nd.com for current officials. We name an official only when a public source lists a current term, and none does for Lakota yet.
How did Lakota vote in 2024?
North Dakota counts votes by county and precinct, not by city, so there are no official results for Lakota alone. Nelson County, where 100% of Lakota lies, voted Trump 64.8%, Harris 32.9% for president; its page has every race.
How many people work for Lakota?
4 full-time and 3 part-time employees in March 2022, with a March payroll of $22,069 (about $264,828 a year if every month were the same); Census Bureau estimates.
Who represents Lakota in the state legislature?
State Senate District 29 (Terry Wanzek) and State House District 29 (Craig Headland and Don Vigesaa). The House district also covers 162 other towns. Listed by Open States; districts from the Census Bureau.
Ask neighbors about Lakota’s government
Neighbors who’ve been to the meetings can help.
Budget and staff: U.S. Census Bureau, Census of Governments (2022, every government) and Annual Survey of State and Local Government Finances (2023–24, a sample) and the Annual Survey of Public Employment & Payroll (for Lakota, the Bureau’s estimates); day-to-day spending is current operations, with hospitals, utilities and airports apart. School district: Census school finance survey, 2023–24. Property tax: Census American Community Survey, 2020–24. Elections: official 2024 returns via the MIT Election Data + Science Lab; turnout uses Census citizen voting-age population (CVAP, 2020–24). Officials: Open States, names shown only with a current term (checked October 9, 2026). Districts: Census Bureau (119th Congress, 2024 state districts); legislators: Open States and congress-legislators. How Town Hall works →