BISMARCK – With Attorney General Wayne Stenehjem wielding a nearly $400,000 war chest for his gubernatorial campaign, GOP challenger and former Microsoft executive Doug Burgum is ready to dip into his own substantial finances to compete for the Republican Party’s nomination.
Burgum said that while he plans on mounting a full fundraising effort, he’s always been willing to put his own money on the line and wants “to invest appropriately to be effective.”
“I intend to make sure that we’ve got the dollars we need to run an effective campaign,” said Burgum, who plans to run for the Republican nomination in the June primary election regardless of whether he wins the party’s endorsement in April.
Stenehjem raised more than $244,000 last year for the gubernatorial race and had more than $239,000 on hand as of Dec. 31, according to his year-end campaign finance statement filed Monday. He also had $150,538 in carryover from his attorney general campaign account, which could be used for the governor’s race.
Burgum announced his candidacy Jan. 14, so his first campaign disclosure statement will be the pre-primary report due May 13.
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Stenehjem campaign manager Nate Martindale said Burgum’s announcement triggered “broad support from across the state from a lot of new individuals” supporting Stenehjem’s candidacy. He said he didn’t know how much the campaign raised in January but said, “Fundraising is going extraordinarily well.”
The other candidate seeking the GOP endorsement, state Rep. Rick Becker of Bismarck, reported an ending balance of $20,306 after raising $31,170 last year.
