URBANDALE, Iowa — Longshot Republican presidential candidate Doug Burgum insists he’s staying in the 2024 race at least long enough to “beat expectations” in January’s Iowa caucuses — a goal which he joked should be easy to meet, since he has “the lowest expectations.”
The billionaire North Dakota governor failed to qualify for the third RNC debate earlier this month, is unlikely to make the stage for the next debate Dec. 6 in Alabama, and is averaging just 2.7% support in the Hawkeye State, according to RealClearPolitics — a mere 44.3 percentage points behind former President Donald Trump.
So what, it may be fair to ask, is he still doing in this race?
“I am not running for a Cabinet position. I am not selling a book,” the 67-year-old Burgum told The Post after meeting with about 30 Iowans in the back of a Pizza Ranch restaurant in this Des Moines suburb Monday night.
The governor went on to insist his views on the economy, energy and national security make him the best potential commander-in-chief of anyone in the field — and argued the Republican National Committee’s metrics for debate qualification should take into account farming experience.
“We will be on the ballot and people will be able to caucus for us in January. Here and in New Hampshire, absolutely, positively,” said Burgum, who argued “political pundits and the RNC” are “creating false deadlines” for campaigns to show signs of viability.
Iowans who attended Burgum’s event in Urbandale or caught his speech at the Adair County GOP Reagan Dinner in nearby Fontanelle, told The Post that they were still “open” to learning about Republican contenders, but none said that Burgum was definitely their top choice.
“You look at Gov. Burgum here tonight, and I don’t think anyone is going to lie to you and tell you that Doug Burgum’s poll numbers are on fire, but he’s obviously infinitely more qualified than Joe Biden,” said Ryan Frederick, chairman of the Adair County Republican Party.
Frederick argued that even if Burgum does not pull off a modern-day political miracle and win the Republican nomination, his messaging could “influence” politics going forward, and that he “for sure has a spot in the Cabinet.”
Gary Leffler of West Des Moines, who unsuccessfully ran to represent Iowa’s Third Congressional District in 2022, said he was for Trump, but liked that Burgum represented “small town values” and wondered if there was room for him in a possible administration.
Clel Baudler, a former Iowa state representative and Greenfield resident, said he was on Team DeSantis due to the Florida governor’s military service.
One spectator at the Pizza Ranch event asked Burgum what his strategy was to get his message out, given the “rigged” system that the governor had decried.
“You don’t have to win Iowa to gain national attention. All you have to do is beat expectations. So one thing I’ve set up for all of you is that we have the lowest expectations,” Burgum said to laughter.
The former software executive’s message of bringing “small town values” to Washington and his farming experience in North Dakota apparently resonated with his Midwestern audience.
In a true “only-in-Iowa” moment, some of the spectators expressed frustration with the bureaucratic nature of the US Department of Agriculture, to which Burgum responded by suggesting it be relocated to Iowa from DC.