Rep. Kelly Armstrong of North Dakota, who was endorsed by former President Donald Trump, won his state’s Republican nomination for governor, defeating Lt. Gov. Tammy Miller, The Associated Press projects.
Gov. Doug Burgum, who decided not to seek a third term and has emerged as a potential running mate for Trump, had endorsed Miller as his successor. But Trump weighed in late last month with a statement of support for Armstrong, who was considered the favorite to win the primary.
“In Congress, Kelly has vigorously defended me via two SHAM Impeachments, and is 100% MAGA,” Trump posted on Truth Social on May 30.
The primaries represented an unusual rift between Trump and Burgum, who have grown close in recent months. After ending his own run for president, Burgum endorsed Trump and has emerged as one of the leading candidates to become his vice presidential choice.
Asked about their differing preferences in an interview late last month on CNN, Burgum said North Dakotans were “so happy in our state [to] have two great candidates.”
“I support one; President Trump supports the other,” Burgum said. “But whoever wins that primary in about 12 days, North Dakota will have a great governor.”
After Tuesday’s results, Burgum congratulated Armstrong and state Public Service Commissioner Julie Fedorchak, who won the Republican Party primary for Armstrong’s at-large seat, in a post on X. Trump and Burgum both endorsed Fedorchak.
“Congratulations to Kelly Armstrong and Julie Fedorchak on their hard-fought primaries! Competition is great for the Republican Party and our state is better for it,” Burgum wrote. “I spoke with both Kelly and Julie this evening and we can count on them to support President Trump and provide strong conservative leadership for North Dakotans both in the governor’s office and in Congress.”
Armstrong will face state Sen. Merrill Piepkorn, who was unopposed for the Democratic nomination, in the general election. North Dakota, a heavily Republican state, has not elected a Democratic governor since 1988. Burgum won re-election in 2020 by more than 40 percentage points.
Armstrong, 47, has represented North Dakota’s at-large congressional district since 2019. He was previously chairman of the Republican Party.
“Since we started, we’ve gone from one end of the state to the other,” Armstrong said of his campaign during a May 30 debate with Miller. “We have done over 100 media interviews and had the opportunity to meet thousands of North Dakotans across the state. And that won’t change when I’m governor. I just don’t know any other way to do this job.”
Miller, 64, presented himself as a political outsider. Like Burgum, she had extensive experience in the private sector before entering politics after serving as CEO of a major electricity distributor. Burgum appointed Miller lieutenant governor in 2022, following her stint as chief operating officer.
“Our country and our state have done so well with leaders who have business experience, like Governor Burgum and President Trump,” Miller said during last month’s debate. “We need another outsider and business leader in the governor’s office.”
Armstrong and Miller both campaigned as Trump loyalists. During their recent debate, hours after a jury found Trump guilty of 34 crimes in his hush-money trial, both defended him.
“I used to do this for a living,” said Armstrong, an attorney. “And I don’t know what the hell he was convicted of.”
Miller, like other Republicans, characterized the trial as a political persecution.
“We wouldn’t have had any of these cases if President Trump wasn’t seeking re-election,” she said. “This is typical politics, a strategy to keep him off the campaign trail.”
This article was originally published on NBCNews.com
