North Dakota gubernatorial election, 2016
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← 2012
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June 14, 2016 |
November 8, 2016 |
Doug Burgum (R) Brent Sanford (R) |
Gov. Jack Dalrymple (R) Lt. Gov. Drew Wrigley (R) |
Governor/Lt. Governor Down Ballot Auditor • Treasurer • Insurance Commissioner • Public Service Commission • Superintendent |
North Dakota held an election for governor and lieutenant governor on November 8, 2016. Former Microsoft executive Doug Burgum (R) and running mate Brent Sanford (R) won the election, keeping the office under Republican control.
Overview
The governor and lieutenant governor of North Dakota are elected together on a single ticket. Gov. Jack Dalrymple (R), who was eligible to run for re-election, declined to do so in 2016.
North Dakota has been under Republican trifecta control since 1995; the office of governor has been held by Republicans since 1993. Gov. Dalrymple won re-election in 2012 by a margin of nearly 30 percentage points over the Democratic Party nominee.
Former Microsoft executive Doug Burgum (R) defeated Attorney General Wayne Stenehjem (R) in the June 14 Republican primary election. Stenehjem went into the primary as the party favorite, having won the party endorsement at the April 2 state convention. Burgum told the press he would run in the primary election regardless of losing the endorsement; he then won a surprising 20-point victory over Stenehjem, earning the Republican spot in the general election.
State Rep. Marvin Nelson (D) and his running mate state Sen. Joan Heckaman were unopposed for the Democratic Party's nomination. Nelson was first elected to the North Dakota House of Representatives in 2010. Marty Riske ran with Joshua Voytek on the Libertarian ticket.
As noted below, this race was rated Safe Republican. Burgum won the general election on November 8, 2016.
Candidates and results
Candidates
In North Dakota, the governor and lieutenant governor are elected together on a joint ticket.
Marvin Nelson (D)
Gubernatorial candidate
State representative
Joan Heckaman (D)
Lieutenant gubernatorial candidate
State senator
Doug Burgum (R)
Gubernatorial candidate
Former Microsoft executive
Brent Sanford (R)
Lieutenant gubernatorial candidate
Watford City mayor
Marty Riske (Lib.)
Gubernatorial candidate
Technology executive
Joshua Voytek (Lib.)
Lieutenant gubernatorial candidate
Restaurant manager
| Click show to see a list of candidates who were defeated in the primary elections or declined to run in this race. | |||
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Results
General election
Doug Burgum and Brent Sanford defeated Marvin Nelson and Joan Heckaman and Marty Riske and Joshua Voytek in the North Dakota governor election.
| North Dakota Governor, 2016 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
| Republican |  Doug Burgum and Brent Sanford |
76.52% | 259,863 | |
| Democratic | Marvin Nelson and Joan Heckaman | 19.39% | 65,855 | |
| Libertarian | Marty Riske and Joshua Voytek | 3.90% | 13,230 | |
| Write-in votes | 0.19% | 653 | ||
| Total Votes | 339,601 | |||
| Source: North Dakota Secretary of State | ||||
Primary elections
Marvin Nelson ran unopposed in the Democratic primary for governor and lieutenant governor.
| Democratic primary for governor and lieutenant governor, 2016 | ||
|---|---|---|
| Candidate | Vote % | Votes |
| Marvin Nelson (unopposed) |
99.66% | 17,278 |
| Write-in votes | 0.34% | 59 |
| Total Votes (432 of 432 precincts reporting) | 17,337 | |
| Source: North Dakota Secretary of State | ||
Doug Burgum defeated Wayne Stenehjem and Paul Sorum in the Republican primary for governor and lieutenant governor.
| Republican primary for governor and lieutenant governor, 2016 | ||
|---|---|---|
| Candidate | Vote % | Votes |
| Doug Burgum |
59.47% | 68,042 |
| Wayne Stenehjem | 38.59% | 44,158 |
| Paul Sorum | 1.89% | 2,164 |
| Write-in votes | 0.04% | 51 |
| Total Votes (432 of 432 precincts reporting) | 114,415 | |
| Source: North Dakota Secretary of State | ||
Marty Riske ran unopposed in the Libertarian primary for governor and lieutenant governor.
| Libertarian primary for governor and lieutenant governor, 2016 | ||
|---|---|---|
| Candidate | Vote % | Votes |
| Marty Riske (unopposed) |
99.36% | 1,088 |
| Write-in votes | 0.64% | 7 |
| Total Votes (432 of 432 precincts reporting) | 1,095 | |
| Source: North Dakota Secretary of State | ||
About the primary
A primary election is an election in which voters select the candidate they believe should represent a political party in a general election. Primaries usually take place several months before a general election. North Dakota utilizes an open primary system, in which voters do not have to be members of a party to vote in that party's primary.[5][6][7] In North Dakota, major party candidates are usually nominated or endorsed by the party at the state conventions, which take place prior to the primary elections. Often, candidates who do not receive the endorsements do not file to run in the primary, however that is not mandatory and major party candidates can and do run in the primary regardless of receiving the official party nod.
Primary contests for nonpartisan elections take the form of a top-two primary, with the top-two vote getters advancing to the general election.
North Dakota's primary elections took place on June 14, 2016.
Party control
North Dakota Party Control: 1992-2024
No Democratic trifectas • Thirty years of Republican trifectas
Scroll left and right on the table below to view more years.
| Year | 92 | 93 | 94 | 95 | 96 | 97 | 98 | 99 | 00 | 01 | 02 | 03 | 04 | 05 | 06 | 07 | 08 | 09 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 21 | 22 | 23 | 24 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Governor | D | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R |
| Senate | D | D | D | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R |
| House | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R |
North Dakota has been under Republican trifecta control since 1995, and Republicans have seen comfortable margins of victory in recent statewide elections. The 2012 Republican Dalrymple/Wrigley ticket for governor won by a nearly 30-point margin.[8] In 2014, Attorney General Stenehjem won a fifth term in office with over 74 percent of the vote.[9]
However, recent elections have also shown that popular Democrats can and do win statewide elections in North Dakota. Most recently, Heidi Heitkamp (D) narrowly defeated her Republican opponent in the United States Senate race in 2012, even as Mitt Romney carried the state by a nearly 20-point margin and Dalrymple was elected governor by an even larger margin.[10] Before Heitkamp, North Dakotans were represented in the United States Senate by Democrat Kent Conrad, who won election five times. During his 1992 re-election bid, he defeated Jack Dalrymple by a 30-point margin.[11][12]
The last Democrat to occupy the governor's office was George Sinner, who served as governor from 1985 until his retirement in 1992.[13]
Debates
- March 9: First Republican debate with candidates Rick Becker, Doug Burgum and Wayne Stenehjem participating.[14]
Republican primary debate, May 7, 2016
Doug Burgum, Wayne Stenehjem, and Paul Sorum debated on May 7, 2016, in Crosby, with Stenehjem and Burgum engaging in fierce dialogue. Stenehjem criticized Burgum for running ads opposing him, while Burgum disparaged Stenehjem's salary as attorney general. All three candidates stated they would not support tax increases, offered reasons why they were qualified for the office of governor, and stated what they would do with $50 million if the funds became available via a referendum. Burgum stated he would spend it on education, Stenehjem stated he would invest in drug treatment programs, and Sorum stated he would free up that money by smart spending rather than needing a referendum.[15][16][17]
Race tracking
Race rating: Safe Republican
| Race Ratings: North Dakota Governor | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Race Tracker | Race Ratings | ||||||||
| The Cook Political Report | Likely Republican | Safe Republican | |||||||
| Governing | Safe Republican | Safe Republican | |||||||
| Larry J. Sabato's Crystal Ball | Safe Republican | Safe Republican | |||||||
| Inside Elections with Nathan L. Gonzales | Safe Republican | Safe Republican | |||||||
| Daily Kos Race Ratings | Safe Republican | Safe Republican | |||||||
| Note: Ballotpedia updates external race ratings every two weeks throughout the election season. | |||||||||
Polls
Republican primary election candidates match-up:
| Governor of North Dakota | |||||||||||||||||||
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| Poll | Wayne Stenehjem (R) | Doug Burgum (R) | Unsure | Margin of error | Sample size | ||||||||||||||
| DFM Research/North Dakota United February 18-25, 2016 | 59% | 10% | 31% | +/-5.1 | 369 | ||||||||||||||
| Note: The polls above may not reflect all polls that have been conducted in this race. Those displayed are a random sampling chosen by Ballotpedia staff. If you would like to nominate another poll for inclusion in the table, send an email to editor@ballotpedia.org. | |||||||||||||||||||
Endorsements
| Key endorsements, Republican primary candidates | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wayne Stenehjem | Doug Burgum | ||||||||
| North Dakota Republican Party | Former Governor Ed Schafer (R) | ||||||||
| National Rifle Association | Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella | ||||||||
| North Dakota United | Former Mayor of Dickinson Dennis Johnson | ||||||||
| Senate Majority Leader Rich Wardner (R) | |||||||||
| Speaker of the House Wesley Belter (R) | |||||||||
| What is a key endorsement? | |||||||||
Campaign finance
The following charts detail the finances of the three major candidates during North Dakota's 2016 gubernatorial election. Wayne Stenehjem (R) is included because of his contested primary campaign with eventual nominee Doug Burgum (R).
| Click [show] to view campaign finance information for this election. | |||
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Campaign media
Note: If a candidate is not listed below, Ballotpedia staff were unable to locate any campaign media for that candidate. Do you know of any? Tell us!
Democrats
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Republicans
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Libertarians
| Marty Riske (Lib.) |  
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Recent news
The link below is to the most recent stories in a Google news search for the terms North Dakota state Governor election. These results are automatically generated from Google. Ballotpedia does not curate or endorse these articles.
Past elections
2012
Incumbent Jack Dalrymple (R) ran for election to a full, four-year term in 2012. His running mate was Drew Wrigley, his current lieutenant governor. In the general election in November, they defeated Democrats Ryan Taylor & Ellen Chaffee and two pairs of independent nominees, Roland Riemers & Anthony Johns and Paul Sorum & Michael Coachman.[18][19]
| Governor/Lieutenant Governor of North Dakota General Election, 2012 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
| Republican | Jack Dalrymple & Drew Wrigley Incumbent |
63.1% | 200,525 | |
| Democratic | Ryan Taylor & Ellen Chaffee | 34.3% | 109,048 | |
| independent | Paul Sorum & Michael Coachman | 1.7% | 5,356 | |
| independent | Roland Riemers & Anthony Johns | 0.8% | 2,618 | |
| Total Votes | 317,547 | |||
| Election results via North Dakota Secretary of State | ||||
To view the full electoral history for Governor of North Dakota, click [show] to expand the full section. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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About the offices
April 11, 2016 |
March 31-April 2, 2016 April 1-3, 2016 |
June 14, 2016 |
September 6, 2016 |
October 18, 2016 |
November 8, 2016 |
TBD |
December 15, 2016 |
Governor
- Main article: Governor of North Dakota
The governor of the state of North Dakota is an elected constitutional officer, the head of the executive branch, and the highest state office in North Dakota. The governor is popularly elected every four years by a plurality and has no term limit. The 32nd governor was Jack Dalrymple, a Republican appointed in December 2010 after John Hoeven resigned to become a U.S. senator. Dalrymple won re-election to a full term in 2012.[20]
Incumbent
Governor Jack Dalrymple was first elected Lieutenant Governor of North Dakota in 2000 as the running mate of former governor John Hoeven (R). Together, they beat Democratic gubernatorial candidate Heidi Heitkamp, 55 percent to 45 percent.[21] After winning re-election in 2004 and 2008, Hoeven announced that he would run for the United States Senate in 2010. Upon winning that race, Hoeven resigned and Dalrymple succeeded him as governor. Dalrymple won election to a full term as governor in 2012, earning 63 percent of the vote.[22]
Despite being eligible for a second full term as governor, Dalrymple announced on August 24, 2015, that he would not seek re-election, saying that he wanted to spend more time with his family. His decision not only left the Republican field open, but it also heightened speculation that Heidi Heitkamp, a member of the United States Senate, would attempt a second run for governor. Heitkamp announced in September 2015 that she would not run for governor.[23]
Lieutenant governor
- Main article: Lieutenant Governor of North Dakota
The lieutenant governor of the State of North Dakota is an elected constitutional officer, the second ranking officer of the executive branch and the first officer in line to succeed the governor of North Dakota. The lieutenant governor is popularly elected every four years by a plurality and has no term limit. 37th lieutenant governor was Drew Wrigley, a Republican first appointed in 2010 to replace Jack Dalrymple (R) when Dalrymple succeeded to the governor's office.[24] Wrigley won a full, four-year term as lieutenant governor in the November 2012 general election.
State profile
| Demographic data for North Dakota | ||
|---|---|---|
| North Dakota | U.S. | |
| Total population: | 756,835 | 316,515,021 |
| Land area (sq mi): | 69,001 | 3,531,905 |
| Race and ethnicity** | ||
| White: | 88.7% | 73.6% |
| Black/African American: | 1.6% | 12.6% |
| Asian: | 1.2% | 5.1% |
| Native American: | 5.3% | 0.8% |
| Pacific Islander: | 0% | 0.2% |
| Two or more: | 2.2% | 3% |
| Hispanic/Latino: | 2.9% | 17.1% |
| Education | ||
| High school graduation rate: | 91.7% | 86.7% |
| College graduation rate: | 27.7% | 29.8% |
| Income | ||
| Median household income: | $57,181 | $53,889 |
| Persons below poverty level: | 12.2% | 11.3% |
| Source: U.S. Census Bureau, "American Community Survey" (5-year estimates 2010-2015) Click here for more information on the 2020 census and here for more on its impact on the redistricting process in North Dakota. **Note: Percentages for race and ethnicity may add up to more than 100 percent because respondents may report more than one race and the Hispanic/Latino ethnicity may be selected in conjunction with any race. Read more about race and ethnicity in the census here. | ||
Presidential voting pattern
North Dakota voted Republican in all six presidential elections between 2000 and 2020.
Pivot Counties (2016)
Ballotpedia identified 206 counties that voted for Donald Trump (R) in 2016 after voting for Barack Obama (D) in 2008 and 2012. Collectively, Trump won these Pivot Counties by more than 580,000 votes. Of these 206 counties, four are located in North Dakota, accounting for 1.94 percent of the total pivot counties.[25]
Pivot Counties (2020)
In 2020, Ballotpedia re-examined the 206 Pivot Counties to view their voting patterns following that year's presidential election. Ballotpedia defined those won by Trump won as Retained Pivot Counties and those won by Joe Biden (D) as Boomerang Pivot Counties. Nationwide, there were 181 Retained Pivot Counties and 25 Boomerang Pivot Counties. North Dakota had three Retained Pivot Counties, 1.66 percent of all Retained Pivot Counties.
More North Dakota coverage on Ballotpedia
- Elections in North Dakota
- United States congressional delegations from North Dakota
- Public policy in North Dakota
- Endorsers in North Dakota
- North Dakota fact checks
- More...
See also
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North Dakota government: |
Previous elections: |
Ballotpedia exclusives: |
External links
- Office of the North Dakota Governor
- Office of the North Dakota Lieutenant Governor
- Office of the North Dakota Secretary of State
Footnotes
- ↑ John Hageman, Forum News Service, "Becker, a candidate for North Dakota governor, argues for small role for government," November 14, 2015
- ↑ Star Tribune, "North Dakota Gov. Jack Dalrymple says he won't seek re-election in 2016, cites family," August 24, 2015
- ↑ RedState, "North Dakota Gov. Jack Dalrymple’s retirement puts Sen. Heidi Heitkamp in quite the pickle," August 25, 2015
- ↑ Valley News Live, "North Dakota Lt. Governor Drew Wrigley says he will not run for governor after admitting affair," September 28, 2015
- ↑ National Conference of State Legislatures Website, "State Primary Election Types," accessed January 6, 2014
- ↑ Fair Vote, "Congressional and Presidential Primaries: Open, Closed, Semi-Closed, and 'Top Two,'" accessed January 6, 2014
- ↑ Ballotpedia research conducted December 26, 2013, through January 3, 2014, researching and analyzing various state websites and codes.
- ↑ North Dakota Secretary of State, "NORTH DAKOTA OFFICIAL ABSTRACT OF VOTES CAST AT THE GENERAL ELECTION HELD ON NOVEMBER 6, 2012," accessed Aug. 24, 2015
- ↑ North Dakota Secretary of State, "Official Results, General Election - November 4, 2014
- ↑ The New York Times, "Election 2012: North Dakota," accessed August 24, 2015
- ↑ U.S. News, "10 things you didn't know about Kent Conrad," accessed Aug. 24, 2015
- ↑ North Dakota Secretary of State, "OFFICIAL ABSTRACT OF VOTES CAST AT THE SPECIAL ELECTION HELD DECEMBER 4,1992," accessed Aug. 24, 2015
- ↑ National Governor's Association, "George Albert Sinner," accessed Aug. 24, 2015
- ↑ The Dickinson Press, "NDGOP sets gubernatorial debate for March 9," Feb 5, 2016
- ↑ Grand Forks Herald, "MIKE JACOBS: Divide County debate highlights North Dakota GOP's divides," May 10, 2016
- ↑ The Jamestown Sun, "Gubernatorial candidates debate," May 9, 2016
- ↑ The Bismarck Tribune, "Stenehjem, Burgum trade barbs at gubernatorial debate," May 7, 2916
- ↑ North Dakota Secretary of State, "Unofficial results, primary election," accessed June 12, 2012
- ↑ Bismark Tribune, "General Election Results," accessed November 6, 2012
- ↑ ValleyNewsLive.com, "Dalrymple to run in 2012," November 1, 2011
- ↑ North Dakota Secretary of State, "NORTH DAKOTA'S OFFICIAL ABSTRACT OF VOTES CAST AT THE GENERAL ELECTION HELD ON NOVEMBER 7, 2000," accessed Aug. 24, 2015
- ↑ Inforum, "With Dalrymple out, speculation intensifies over ND gubernatorial race," accessed Aug. 24, 2015
- ↑ The Washington Times, "Sen. Heidi Heitkamp says no run for North Dakota governor,"accessed February 15,2016
- ↑ North Dakota Office of the Lieutenant Governor, "Lieutenant Governor Drew Wrigley," accessed April 30, 2015
- ↑ The raw data for this study was provided by Dave Leip of Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections.
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