ND politicos mum on governor picks

FARGO - One of the big questions this election season is who will fill Jack Dalrymple's shoes as governor of North Dakota when the Republican's term expires after this year.

Right up there is the question of who will get whose endorsement when it comes to Republican candidates.

So far, three Republican hopefuls - Fargo businessman and entrepreneur Doug Burgum, North Dakota Attorney General Wayne Stenehjem and state Rep. Rick Becker of Bismarck - have announced they are running for governor.

The Forum reached out to some North Dakota Republicans to see whether they were prepared to say who they favor for governor and why.

Gov. Jack Dalrymple

Dalrymple, who announced in August 2015 he would not run for re-election in 2016, provided the North Dakota Republican Party with a statement regarding his position on endorsements. In it, the governor made no specific endorsements, but said:

"It's good news for North Dakota that the Republican Party has some great people who want to lead our state. Competition for the endorsement is healthy and gives us an opportunity to educate people about how Republicans have successfully moved North Dakota forward and why we want to keep a Republican in the governor's office."

Former Gov. Ed Schafer

The short answer: "I will not be endorsing anyone," Schafer said in a written statement.

In the same statement, Schafer elaborated a bit:

"Many people come to me and want to discuss running for various elected offices. I always spend some time with them to discuss the issues and my observations.

"Because of that, it has been my policy since 1992 not to endorse a candidate until there is a nominated candidate for that position; it just doesn't seem fair for me to encourage people to run and then pick someone else to champion."

U.S. Sen. and former Gov. John Hoeven

Through a spokesman, Hoeven indicated he would not make an endorsement, saying it was up to Republicans to pick their candidate.

U.S. Rep. Kevin Cramer

Attempts to reach Cramer for comment were unsuccessful.

State Rep. and House Majority Leader Al Carlson

"In my position, I have to work with whoever wins, so I'm going to sit on the sidelines and watch," Carlson said in a phone interview.

"I'll obviously have an opinion and a vote," he said, "but as far as endorsing anybody, I'm not going to do it."

In announcing his candidacy, Burgum said he has been a past convention delegate and honorary campaign committee chairman for Dalrymple and Hoeven.

Burgum also said that before announcing his candidacy he spent time consulting with Dalrymple, Schafer and Hoeven.

Stenehjem has been North Dakota's attorney general for the past 15 years. Before that, he served many years in the state Legislature from Grand Forks.

Becker, a Mandan native, is owner of Becker Plastic Surgery. He is also a commercial real estate developer.