PAC Aligned With Burgum Rallies Out-of-State Money, Including From COVID-19 Testing Leader, to Defeat Republicans
MINOT, N.D. — It can be hard to see through the cloud of anxiety and consternation that is the COVID-19 pandemic, but the 2020 campaign season is upon us, and interesting things are happening.
Perhaps most interesting in the cycle so far is Gov. Doug Burgum’s aggressive moves to influence outcomes on the June primary ballot, which feature several Republican versus Republican races for state and local offices.
Burgum has intervened in the treasurer race, choosing state Rep. Tom Beadle of Fargo over state Rep. Dan Johnston of Kathryn (who has been endorsed by U.S. Sen. Kevin Cramer, outgoing Treasurer Kelly Schmidt, and Auditor Josh Gallion).
Burgum has also sought to influence legislative races in places like District 28, which I wrote about last month, and District 8, which my friend Mike Jacobs wrote about last week.
The Dakota Leadership PAC is spending money in those races. They’re paying for mailers for their preferred candidates, for instance.
