North Dakota governor's own funds target fellow Republicans

BISMARCK, N.D. (AP) — North Dakota GOP Gov. Doug Burgum has shelled out nearly $1 million ahead of the state’s primary election largely to a political action campaign that historically has focused on defeating Republican far-right candidates or those who do not agree with his spending initiatives and policy goals.

The second-term governor has given $935,000 to the Dakota Leadership PAC, according to campaign filings. The contributions continue a trend by the wealthy former software executive of reaching deep into his own pockets in an effort to help elect legislators more obliging to his wishes.

In 2020, Burgum contributed more than $3.2 million to the political action committee, headed by Levi Bachmeier, Burgum’s former policy director. Burgum also contributed more than $1.3 million to his own campaign two years ago, as well as donations ranging from $500 to $25,000 to about 20 incumbent and first-time legislative candidates

Burgum has declined interviews with The Associated Press to talk about his campaign spending. His office has referred questions to his campaign staff and the PAC.

“We are grateful for the Governor’s continued support of Dakota Leadership PAC. Our mission remains to elect conservative Republicans who share the governor’s vision to strengthen North Dakota’s economy,” Bachmeier said in a statement Monday.

Burgum, 65, is a small-town North Dakota success story with an MBA from Stanford. He mortgaged the family farm near Arthur to join a startup, Great Plains Software, in 1983. Later, as CEO, he took the company public in 1997 before selling it to Microsoft in 2001 for $1.1 billion, then ran Microsoft’s business software division from Fargo.

Burgum’s political spending has drawn widespread criticism within his own party. It included an unsuccessful...