Longtime lawmaker Byron Langley dies at 91
GRAND FORKS—Longtime North Dakota legislator Byron John Langley died last week at the age of 91, according to an obituary published Wednesday, Jan. 17.
Langley, who spent nearly all his life farming and ranching near Warwick, N.D., within the Spirit Lake Nation, died surrounded by family Saturday, Jan. 13, at St. Alexius Medical Center in Carrington, N.D.
When he wasn't in the fields and pastures, Langley was in the North Dakota Legislature, serving as a Democrat first as a House representative for the 12th district from 1973 to 1980. A few years after that, Langley was elected to the Senate, where he served from 1985 to 1996 before retiring from politics.
Langley's passing was marked by a press release from the office of Sen. Heidi Heitkamp, D-N.D., which described Langley as a dedicated public servant and "larger-than-life figure" who was respected by his colleagues and who "loved his family, conversations about agriculture and a good cattle auction."
"Byron truly represented the best values of our state—participating actively in the community, checking in on neighbors going through tough times, and passing on the farming and ranching lifestyle to his children and grandchildren," Heitkamp said. "His humble leadership and commitment to the people of North Dakota live on in those whose lives he touched."
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Andrew Haffner covers higher education and general assignment stories for the Grand Forks Herald. He attended the University of Wisconsin in Madison, where he studied journalism, political science and international studies. He previously worked at the Dickinson Press.
