• Second-term Republican Gov. Doug Burgham of North Dakota is expected to announce his candidacy for the 2024 presidential election on Wednesday.
• Mr. Brugum was a longtime private-sector businessman who founded several businesses before winning two sweeping governorship elections.
• “Doug Bergham never gets involved in anything he thinks he can’t win,” Jim Poolman, former state legislator, state Republican vice chairman and state insurance secretary, told DCNF. “I think he really believes he can win, and I really believe he can.”

The governor of North Dakota is one of the nation’s most popular governors, but few people outside the state have heard of him. As he prepares to run for the Republican primary in the anticipated presidential election this week, several longtime Gov. said he was doing everything in his power to win the election and wouldn’t flinch. With long odds against him.

Bergum, who is already filming a TV commercial, will make a “big announcement” Wednesday in Fargo, North Dakota, where he will begin his presidential campaign, the DCNF previously confirmed. Several state political operatives told the DCNF that the wealthy private businessman is popular throughout North Dakota, has good relations with Congress, and is very vocal.

“He’s a risk taker,” Lloyd Omdahl, a former lieutenant governor and professor of political science at the University of North Dakota, told DCNF. “He is not intimidated by new situations.”

Brugum had no prior political experience and had no voting rights when he ran for governor in 2016. approval Attorney General Wayne Stenedjem, one of the Republican convention delegates in the Republican gubernatorial primary, participated.stenejem provided Burgham has served in both houses of the state legislature and has been North Dakota’s top attorney for more than two decades, but despite his political experience in the state, he trails Stenedjem by about 20 points in the primary. and won.

he is dexterous won In 2016, he defeated the Democratic opposition by 76.52% to 19.39% at the Governor’s Mansion, overwhelmingly securing re-election in the 2020 election by about 40 points.Brugum maintains high support evaluation Throughout my tenure and in 2022 Ranked He is America’s fourth most popular governor, with 66% approval ratings.

Former state legislator and state Republican vice chairman Jim Poolman told the DCNF that Bergum spent his personal fortune, campaigned hard, and worked hard in 2016, and will do the same in 2024. He said he believed he would make a pledge.

“Doug Burgum doesn’t do anything he thinks he can’t win,” Poolman said, believing Mr. Burgham will be “an adult in attendance” in the Republican primary. “I think he really believes he can win, and I really believe he can.”

The governor has just completed a successful legislative session. signed $515 million in savings and law It is a near-total ban on abortion, with narrow exceptions up to the sixth week of pregnancy.he signed Bill to Ban Sexual Surgery for Minors, Two Bills Ban Biological men are no longer allowed to participate in women’s sports, law The law prohibits teachers from referring to students with non-gendered pronouns.

“I would say we have a very good relationship,” Senate Majority Leader David Hogue told DCNF. “He is very good at reaching out to Congress and having ongoing dialogue with both the majority and the minority. we can understand it.”

Brugham specifically vetoed several bills addressing social issues, some of which he later signed into similar bills.he invoked the right of veto The school choice bill, introduced in late April, would have offered private school vouchers worth $10 million and would have vetoed previous versions of preferred pronouns. Specification Late March and transgender sports law Both ended up signing for this session in 2021.

“That guy has the ball,” said Poolman. “He’s not afraid to accept within his party those who just sabotage or just say no and don’t want to govern. I was never afraid.”

governor hereditary He owned a family farm and mortgaged it in the 1980s to invest in the technology company Great Plains Software. Then, in 2001, he sold to Microsoft for $1.1 billion, where he served as senior vice president until 2007, helping lead the company to software growth. industry, according to to Forbes.

He also Founded In 2006, he joined the Kilbourne Group, a real estate developer, and in 2008, he co-founded Arthur Ventures, which invests in software companies. Bergum also has ties to North Dakota’s agricultural economy, both as part of his grandparents’ agribusiness company and through “ranching partnerships” in the western part of the state.

Poolman said the governor is more concerned with North Dakota’s salient issues such as the economy and energy than conservative social policies being pursued nationwide. Mark Gendrichick, professor of political science at the University of North Dakota, nodded at his veto, saying that DCNF Bergum “certainly isn’t a fire-breathing cultural warrior.”

“He may not have championed the Culture Warrior issue, but he definitely signed most of it,” Poolman claimed. “I think his tail is covered in stuff like that. (Related: North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgham Signs Total Abortion Ban)

The governor has close ties to the energy department of North Dakota, proposer In the fossil fuel industry, he signed Legislation to create a sustainable energy fund and promote carbon capture and storage to reduce emissions. Bergum is a firm believer that governments should solve the problem through ‘innovation’ rather than ‘regulation’ rather than imposing restrictions on the oil and gas industry, which reflects his track record on sustainable energy. Hogue said it has also been proven by Poolman says people are ‘excited’ that he will focus on energy policy when he runs for president, emphasizing acceptance of reform, oil refining, renewable energy and carbon capture. I believe.

Omdahl said he believes Brugum is likely to run for president to advance his energy policy platform and is well positioned to secure a ministerial post as energy secretary. Gendrysik said Burkum’s much-anticipated candidacy came “out of nowhere,” and that if that was the goal, the governor “could be on to something.”

The governor’s expected presidential campaign will be focused on “the economy, energy policy and national security,” and Bergum believes some of these social issues should be decided on a state-by-state basis. said in an interview with DCNF.

“The question is whether there is such a market in the current Republican primary,” Gendrisik said when asked about Lane, who is likely to run for Brugum. That’s what the market is for. ”

Bergum’s prospective run for the Republican primary will not be easy. The governors now face Republican heavyweights such as former President Donald Trump and Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, who are leading an increasingly growing field with 53.2% and 22.4% support, respectively. according to Compared to the Real Clear Politics average.

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