BISMARCK — Facebook has removed an advertisement sponsored by the North Dakota Democratic-NPL warning people they could lose their hunting licenses in other states if they vote here.

The ad was deemed false by fact-checkers for the Associated Press and Politifact. North Dakota Republicans called it a form of voter suppression, and the social media giant appeared to agree.

Facebook rejected the ads after the advertiser had paused them, meaning they're no longer allowed to run, a company spokesperson said Saturday, Nov. 3.

“These ads and the original post violate our policies against voter suppression and have been removed after third-party fact-checkers confirmed the claim is false," the spokesperson said in an email.

Spokespeople for the North Dakota Democratic-NPL didn't return an email seeking comment. Asked about the ads Thursday, Democratic Sen. Heidi Heitkamp noted voting here requires people to establish residency and drew a distinction between resident and nonresident hunting licenses.

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"I think it's really important that people understand the consequences of voting," she said.

Politifact, however, stated, "voting will not cost anyone their hunting licenses."

Call Hageman at (701) 255-5607 or send email to jhageman@forumcomm.com