Seven Republican presidential candidates have met the RNC’s polling and fundraising thresholds to appear at the first primary debate on Aug. 23 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Five of them, Trump, DeSantis, Haley, Christie, and Scott, have at least some national name recognition. A sixth, Vivek Ramaswamy, has gained single-digit traction in the polls and is currently in third place (aka best of the rest). The seventh may be the most compelling Republican candidate — yet few people have heard of him.
Doug Burgum is the two-term Governor of North Dakota — which is not fertile soil for national politicians. Few Americans could name the state’s two Senators and one Representative. So it is unsurprising that few have any clue who Burgum is. And even among Dakotan politicos, he is less well-known than his peer in South Dakota, Gov. Kristi Noem, who is on Trump’s VP list.
However, Burgum’s resume is more attractive than the other little-known Governor in the race, Arkansan Asa Hutchinson, who is the typical “went to law school, did some stuff and became a politician” member of the political class.
Burgum is a small-town boy (Arthur ND, 2020 pop. 328) who showed entrepreneurial spirit at an early age. He struck gold when a picture of him working as a chimney sweep in a Dickensian top hat and tails made the AP wire - and came to the attention of the graduate student admissions office at Stanford University.
At Stanford, he met and worked with Steve Balmer, the former CEO of Microsoft. After receiving his MBA and working as a consultant at McKinsey, he returned to ND. There he started a high-tech firm, Great Plains Software, which he financed with a mortgage on the family’s agricultural land — as Doug likes to say, he “literally bet the farm”.
In 2001, he sold the company to Microsoft for $1.1 billion and walked away with $110 million. (Note: Burgum’s net worth is now $1.1 billion.) After the sale, he went to work as the SVP of Microsoft Business Solutions Group, a division created by the company’s purchase of Great Plains Software.
In 2007, he left Microsoft and returned to ND. He sat on corporate boards and founded several businesses, including the Kilbourne Group, a real-estate development firm, and Arthur Ventures, a venture capital company.
In 2016, he defeated the GOP’s gubernatorial nominee in the primaries and the Democrat in the general election to become the state’s Governor, despite no previous political experience. In 2020, he won re-election. On June 7, 2023, he announced his candidacy for President.
By all rights, his candidacy should have been a pointless vanity project — it may still turn out that way — especially as the RNC is desperate to ensure Trump wins the nomination. To that end, the party required candidates to get donations from 40,000 donors to their campaign committee (or exploratory committee), with "at least 200 unique donors per state or territory in 20+ states and/or territories."
Burgum achieved the threshold by buying the necessary donations. Anyone giving a dollar to his campaign received a $20 Visa gift card in return — which smells like bribery but is perfectly legal. All in all, Burgum seems like a can-do resourceful guy with a legitimate job-promoting, business-growing resume.
But he is a Republican. So any praise the man earns must be seen not as a commentary that he will be good for America. It only reflects that, compared to the rest of the dismal field of Republicans, his philosophy is relatively well-directed — without the social issues hysteria of so many other candidates.
On the surface, Burgum is the usual rights-stripping moralist that has infected the GOP. In April, as Governor, he signed a near-total ban on abortion in the state. He has also signed numerous anti-trans laws, including a near-total ban on gender-affirming care for minors.
Additionally, in 2021 he signed a bill banning the teaching of Critical Race Theory. He has repeatedly sent the national guard to the Mexican border. He is a promoter of fossil fuels. And he is an eager tax cutter. At this point, dear reader, I do not blame you if you ask yourself how Burgum is the least bit different from the other hateful, plutocrat-enabling polluters on the right. I do not blame you.
It is not that Burgum has different policies than other candidates. It is what he chooses to prioritize. On his campaign website, he talks about the economy, national security, and energy. Social issues do not get a mention. And he has stated that as President, he would not lobby for a national abortion ban. Instead, he would leave it up to the states.
As a business leader, Mr. Burgum embraced L.G.B.T.Q. rights as good for all citizens and good for business. So despite his record as Governor in a ruby-red state, he does not read as a fundamentalist crusader passionately devoted to hurting people in the name of God. He has said
“Cultural issues can be handled by states, and they can be handled by school boards and local libraries and city commissions. And there are certain things that the federal government has to focus on, and that’s what our campaign is going to be about.”
And although he believes in fossil fuels — passionately — he has also set a goal for North Dakota to be carbon neutral by 2030 by sequestering carbon dioxide.
I do not write this piece to say that I agree with anything that Burgum backs. I think any Republican as President — regardless of their personal beliefs — will feel enormous pressure to promote the hate that is meat and potatoes to the stunted souls of the ultra-right. As Governor, Burgum has already shown that he understands the political reality of being a Republican with ambitions for higher office. And he has demonstrated he is willing to adopt the positions.
So what makes Burgum any different? Not much. Except he seems interested in tackling the significant issues. And although he has not said anything negative about Trump, he has not reflexively leaped to his defense. In fact, he has ignored him. Nor has he wasted much time (if any) on election denial. Perhaps Burgum’s biggest asset is that he does not come across as insane, while he does appear competent.
That may be cold comfort. But it is the best we can hope for from today’s Republican party.
Here is Burgum’s pitch to America: