Doug Burgum facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Doug Burgum
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Official portrait, 2025
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| 55th United States Secretary of the Interior | |
| Assumed office February 1, 2025 |
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| President | Donald Trump |
| Deputy | Katharine MacGregor |
| Preceded by | Deb Haaland |
| 33rd Governor of North Dakota | |
| In office December 15, 2016 – December 15, 2024 |
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| Lieutenant | Brent Sanford Tammy Miller |
| Preceded by | Jack Dalrymple |
| Succeeded by | Kelly Armstrong |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
Douglas James Burgum
August 1, 1956 Arthur, North Dakota, U.S. |
| Political party | Republican |
| Spouses |
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| Children | 3 |
| Education | North Dakota State University (BA) Stanford University (MBA) |
| Signature |  |
Doug Burgum (born August 1, 1956) is an American businessman and politician. He has been the 55th Secretary of the Interior since February 2025, serving under President Donald Trump. Before this, he was the 33rd governor of North Dakota from 2016 to 2024. He is a member of the Republican Party.
Burgum grew up in Arthur, North Dakota. He studied at North Dakota State University and then earned a master's degree from Stanford University. In 1983, he invested in a software company called Great Plains Software. He became its president and helped it grow a lot. In 2001, he sold the company to Microsoft for $1.1 billion. After that, he worked at Microsoft for a few years. He also started a real estate company called Kilbourne Group and a venture capital group called Arthur Ventures.
In 2016, Burgum was elected governor of North Dakota. He won by a large amount and was reelected in 2020. In 2023, he ran for president but ended his campaign later that year. In November 2024, President-elect Trump announced he would nominate Burgum to be the Secretary of the Interior. The U.S. Senate confirmed him in January 2025, and he started his new role on February 1, 2025.
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Early Life and Education
Doug Burgum was born on August 1, 1956, in Arthur, North Dakota. His family owned an agribusiness that started with his grandfather's grain elevator. When he was in high school, his father passed away, which he said helped shape him.
He graduated from North Dakota State University (NDSU) in 1978. While in college, he was student body president and even started a chimney-sweeping business. He then went to the Stanford Graduate School of Business and earned his master's degree in 1980.
Business Career Highlights
After finishing his studies, Burgum worked as a consultant in Chicago. In 1983, he used money from his family's farmland to invest in Great Plains Software, an accounting software company in Fargo. He became its vice president of marketing.
In 1984, Burgum and other investors bought most of Great Plains Software. He helped the company grow to about 250 employees by 1989 and reach $300 million in yearly sales. The company became publicly traded in 1997. In 2001, Burgum sold Great Plains Software to Microsoft for $1.1 billion. After the sale, he became a senior vice president at Microsoft, managing their business solutions group. He left Microsoft in 2007.
In 2008, Burgum co-founded Arthur Ventures, a company that invests in technology and life science businesses. He also founded the Kilbourne Group, a real estate company that works on developing downtown Fargo. This company has renovated many buildings in Fargo, including the RDO Building.
Governor of North Dakota (2016–2024)
In 2016, Doug Burgum decided to run for governor of North Dakota as a Republican. Even though he had no political experience, he won the primary election and then the general election with over 75% of the votes. He became governor on December 15, 2016.
During his time as governor, North Dakota continued to have a strong fossil fuel industry. Burgum set a goal for North Dakota to become carbon-neutral by 2030. He planned to do this using technology to capture and store carbon dioxide and by using farming methods that help store carbon in the soil. This goal led to billions of dollars in private investments. He was reelected as governor in 2020 with over 65% of the vote.
In December 2022, his lieutenant governor, Brent Sanford, resigned. Burgum then appointed businesswoman Tammy Miller to the role. As governor, Burgum also gave out the Rough Rider Award, which is North Dakota's highest award for civilians.
In 2023, Burgum and other North Dakota officials spoke out against a new law in Minnesota that would require the state's electricity to come from sources that do not produce carbon dioxide. He also worked to help with the shortage of schoolteachers by creating a task force to keep and attract more teachers.
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In March 2023, Burgum vetoed a bill that would have raised the interstate speed limit to 80 mph. He signed other bills that helped members of the North Dakota National Guard by exempting them from income tax and provided over $500 million in tax relief.
In January 2024, Burgum announced he would not run for a third term as governor. He supported Tammy Miller to take his place, but she lost the primary election.
2024 Presidential Campaign
In June 2023, Doug Burgum announced he was running for president in the 2024 United States presidential election. He started campaigning in Iowa. He spent a lot of money on advertisements and was supported by North Dakota's Congressional delegation and actor Josh Duhamel.
Burgum focused on issues like China, saying it was America's "number one threat." To qualify for the first Republican primary debate, he offered $20 gift cards for any donation amount to his campaign, which helped him reach the required number of donors. He also qualified for the second debate.
On December 4, 2023, Burgum announced he was ending his presidential campaign. He said he was frustrated with the rules for qualifying for debates.
After ending his campaign, Burgum supported former president Donald Trump. He campaigned for Trump and became an advisor on Trump's energy policy. Burgum was also considered as a possible running mate for Trump.
Secretary of the Interior (2025–present)
On November 15, 2024, President-elect Donald Trump announced he would nominate Doug Burgum to be the Secretary of the Interior. The Department of the Interior manages public lands, natural resources, and works with Native American tribes. Trump also named Burgum as his new "energy czar" to help with energy policies and private investments. This role also gives Burgum a seat on the National Security Council.
Many Republican senators and tribal leaders supported Burgum's nomination. However, some environmental groups were concerned because of his support for the fossil fuel industry. During his confirmation hearing, Burgum said he believed America's public lands and waters were valuable and supported getting oil, gas, and minerals from them. He also said he wanted to expand America's fossil fuel production to achieve "energy dominance."
On January 23, 2025, a Senate committee approved his nomination. On January 30, 2025, the U.S. Senate confirmed him in a 79–18 vote. He was sworn in on February 1, 2025.
Tenure as Secretary
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As Secretary of the Interior, Burgum's first action was to send an email to the department calling for fewer regulations and more natural resource extraction. He signed orders to speed up project development and remove regulations from the Inflation Reduction Act. He also made sure that programs related to Native American tribes were protected from cuts to other government programs.
Burgum was also asked to lead Trump's efforts to rename the Gulf of Mexico as the "Gulf of America." In March 2025, he suggested that Trump could use emergency powers to keep more coal plants open and increase energy production on federal lands. He also announced that his department would work with the Department of Housing and Urban Development to use public lands to build more affordable housing.
In late March, Burgum announced that 1.53 million acres of the Alaskan Arctic National Wildlife Refuge would be opened for oil drilling. In April, he ordered a stop to a large offshore wind project near New York City, which is part of a bigger effort by the Trump administration to stop such projects.
In May 2025, Burgum completed his financial disclosures, showing he had sold some of his business interests to avoid conflicts of interest. While speaking to the Western Governors Association in June 2025, he talked about expanding rare earth metal and energy extraction in western lands.
Political Views
Doug Burgum has often spoken about his support for the fossil fuel industry, especially in North Dakota. He believes that America being able to produce its own energy is important for national security. He has criticized policies that support electric vehicles and wants to open more public lands for energy activities like mining and drilling for oil and natural gas. He has also said he is committed to clean energy projects.
Energy and Environment
Burgum supports carbon capture pipelines. These pipelines would transport carbon dioxide from ethanol plants to be stored deep underground. He has said that carbon capture is good for the economy and the environment.
Gun Rights
Burgum supports gun rights and has signed laws that make it easier to own firearms.
National Security
Burgum has sent the North Dakota National Guard to the southern border with Mexico multiple times to help Texas. He also helped create the American Governors' Border Strike Force to assist states with border defense. He believes that energy independence is important for protecting the U.S. from countries like China and Russia.
He has expressed concerns about China, calling it America's "number one threat." He also criticized how foreign aid was handled for Ukraine and hostage deals with Iran.
Cybersecurity
In 2019, Burgum signed a law to create a central cybersecurity center for North Dakota's government networks. He also started a Multi-State Security Operations Center to share information about cyber threats between states. In 2023, he signed a bill requiring cybersecurity education for all K-12 students in North Dakota, making it the first state to do so.
LGBTQ Rights
In July 2020, Burgum called the Republican platform on LGBTQ issues "divisive." However, in 2023, he signed several bills that some people have called "anti-trans", including a ban on gender-affirming care for minors.
Education
In November 2021, Burgum signed a law banning the teaching of critical race theory in North Dakota K-12 schools. He believes that federal rules are not helpful for schools and that they prevent teachers from being innovative.
Entitlement Programs
Burgum supports keeping existing government programs like Social Security. He also believes that improving government efficiency can free up more money for these programs. In 2021, he signed a law that removed Social Security from North Dakota's state income tax.
Personal Life
Doug Burgum has three children from his first marriage. In 2016, he married Kathryn Helgaas. As the first lady of North Dakota, Kathryn Burgum led a program called Recovery Reinvented. His daughter, Jesse, owns a film production company and was recognized on the Forbes 30 Under 30 list.
Burgum enjoys the music of Keith Urban and watching TV shows like Yellowstone and Ted Lasso.
Awards and Honors
Burgum has received honorary doctorates from North Dakota State University (2000) and the University of Mary (2006). In 2009, he received the Theodore Roosevelt Roughrider Award from Governor John Hoeven.
Images for kids
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Official portrait, 2025
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Doug Burgum's signature
See also
In Spanish: Doug Burgum para niños
