After taking his software company public in 1997, Doug Burgum gathered a few colleagues in his office and swore them to secrecy.
He wanted to uphold the modesty and decorum central to his North Dakota birthright and his chimney-sweeper past, but he was eager to boast about a splashy new purchase.
While others splurged on cars or boats, Mr. Burgum’s big reveal was a Bobcat front-end loader — a dirt mover for his ranch near Fargo.
“I remember thinking, ‘Yeah, Doug, you’re not big-timing anyone with that one,’” Jeff Young, the software company’s former operations chief, recalled with a laugh.
Now the governor of North Dakota, Mr. Burgum’s long-held scruples over being seen as an attention-monger have hurled the longtime Republican out of political obscurity and into the limelight as one of a handful of the leading contenders in Donald J. Trump’s search for a running mate.
Persons:
Doug Burgum, “, you’re, ’ ” Jeff Young, Burgum’s, monger, Donald J
Locations:
Fargo, North Dakota