Wed, Oct 25th, 2023 - 11:46pm
June 07, 2023 - 11:23am | By Geoff Thaden
FARGO (WDAY) - North Dakota Governor Doug Burgum has joined the Presidential race.
Burgum made the announcement, Wednesday at the Sanctuary Event Center in Fargo.
"This is a family decision," Burgum said during his announcement. "We need a leader who's focused on three things: Economy, Energy and National Security and that's exactly why I'm officially running for President of the United States of America."
Burgum rose to prominence after founding Great Plains Software in North Dakota and then selling the company to Microsoft for $1.1 billion in 2001. Burgum then went on to found Kilbourne Group, a Fargo-based real-estate development firm.
Burgum entered the Republican primary in the 2016 North Dakota gubernatorial election with no political experience. He upset longtime Attorney General and Republican-endorsed candidate Wayne Stenehjem in the primary election, and defeated Democratic nominee Marvin Nelson by a landslide in the general election. He was reelected by a wide margin in 2020.
His current term, which began in 2020, is set to end in December 2024.
"The U.S. has the hardest-working people in the world. But we need new leadership to unleash our potential. When we empower American innovation and energy production, we strengthen the value of the dollar, stop China and Iran, and prevent wars such as Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. We need to embrace innovation over regulation to solve the challenges of the 21st century. We need to return power to the states. Together, we can ensure unlimited opportunity for everyone willing to reach for it," Burgum said in a peice for the Wall Street Journal.
Burgum's next hurdle will be finding his way to a debate stage. Burgum will need 40,000 donors to qualify for the first debate.
