Senator Rich Wardner: Campbell Is the Right Choice for Republicans

The number one political lesson, both nationally and in North Dakota, of the last two years is that voters are eager to elect successful business leaders and political outsiders who are willing to shake up the status quo.

That’s a major reason that Tom Campbell is the perfect candidate to take on Senator Heitkamp this year.

The fact is Tom fits the businessman, outsider model that propelled Donald Trump to win the Republican nomination for President and helped Governor Doug Burgum pull off what was considered by many to be a shocking victory in the 2016 gubernatorial primary.

When Governor Burgum entered the primary race for governor, few political experts gave him a chance to win. Some predicted it would be a “win” if he only lost by single digits. Similarly, I can’t name one national political pundit who predicted Donald Trump would win the GOP nomination and defeat Hillary Clinton.

[mks_pullquote align=”left” width=”300″ size=”24″ bg_color=”#ffffff” txt_color=”#000000″]Tom is a conservative farmer and successful businessman who says he will support President Trump’s conservative agenda.[/mks_pullquote]

Ironically, our current conservative Senator John Hoeven is also an example of a candidate who transitioned from successful businessman to winning political candidate. He did so and defeated Heidi Heitkamp in the process.

Now is the time for Republicans to unite behind Tom Campbell, the candidate best-positioned to beat Senator Heitkamp in November.

Here’s why:

Tom has the right message and the right profile to defeat career politician Heitkamp.

Tom is a conservative farmer and successful businessman who says he will support President Trump’s conservative agenda. That sets up the perfect contrast with Senator Heitkamp, who has been running for office for decades and has repeatedly voted against President Trump’s agenda, most recently tax reform that provides major relief to families throughout North Dakota.

And Tom’s message is already working. According to polling made public by his campaign last fall, he already leads Heitkamp by 3 points and among those who have an opinion of both, his lead grows to double digits.

Additionally, no one can bring the combination of resources and work ethic to this race like Tom. He already has over 2,000 donors and raised $1 million for his campaign. And he will have the resources to go toe-to-toe with Heitkamp’s liberal, special interest allies.

But it’s not just about money. Tom knows to win in North Dakota you need to run a grassroots, retail-style campaign too. It should frighten Heitkamp to learn that Tom has already done 150 events, traveling more than 29,000 miles since beginning his campaign.

I’m proud to support Tom Campbell for U.S. Senate and urge my fellow Republican to join me.