As Republican leaders around the country work to shape the GOP in their image, one governor’s endorsement success rate stands out for its Trump-like margin.
Gov. Kelly Armstrong (R., N.D.) isn’t even on the ballot this year, but he emerged as a major winner. While Armstrong hasn’t even been running the show in Bismarck for two full years, he went 19-20 in endorsements that saw incumbents ousted and his preferred challengers win all across North Dakota.
Armstrong’s 95 percent endorsement success rate would have been a perfect 100 had fewer than two dozen votes switched in a Grand Forks-based special election for state representative.
While Armstrong became a mainstay in Washington, D.C. during his time in Congress, in which he served as one of President Donald Trump’s top defenders, he had spent years running the North Dakota GOP prior to his ascension to Congress.
During his first midterm election as governor, Armstrong put that know-how — and his campaign coffers — to the test, and he came out on top. Armstrong sent approximately $200,000 to Republicans aligned with him. Those candidates ran for offices ranging from superintendent of public instruction to the state House and Senate to Public Service Commission (PSC). With several races decided by a few thousand votes, the Armstrong seal of approval likely proved decisive for GOP candidates.
Rep. Julie Fedorchak (R., N.D.) was another big winner in the primary. While the North Dakota GOP endorsed against Fedorchak, she carried all but one county in her victory.
The results also suggest that anger against data centers is not sufficient to propel candidates to victory, at least in North Dakota. Both PSC candidates who won were viewed as being pro-data center; one defeated an opponent who centered much of his campaign around opposition to data centers.
