North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum injured his leg playing basketball with his staff on Tuesday, sending him to a Milwaukee hospital and leaving his campaign unsure as of Wednesday morning if he will be able to stand at the first Republican presidential primary debate later that night, a spokesperson confirmed to Spectrum News.
What You Need To Know
- North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum injured his leg playing basketball with his staff on Tuesday, sending him to a Milwaukee hospital
- His campaign was unsure as of Wednesday morning if he will be able to stand at the first Republican presidential primary debate later that night
- The little-known conservative governor serving in his second term is one of the eight candidates who made the debate stage
- According to polling by Morning Consult, 61% of Republican primary voters said they had never heard of Burgum, a former tech executive
CNN was the first to report the injury.
“I’ve played lots of pick-up games in my day! This isn’t the first time one has sent me to the ER. Appreciate all the well-wishes!” Burgum posted on X, the platform formerly known as Twitter.
Candidates are expected to tour the debate facility at Milwaukee’s Fiserv Forum, home of the NBA’s Milwaukee Bucks, on Wednesday, according to a Fox News memo obtained by Spectrum News. The debate is scheduled to start at 9 p.m. EST.
I’ve played lots of pick-up games in my day! This isn’t the first time one has sent me to the ER. Appreciate all the well-wishes! 🇺🇸#TeamBurgum pic.twitter.com/5YL3rCEnCd
— Doug Burgum (Text “DOUG” to 70177) (@DougBurgum) August 23, 2023
As governor, the now-67-year-old Burgum played at least twice in an annual amateur basketball tournament in North Dakota, according to local media reports.
“I’ve been playing amateur ball in North Dakota for over 30 years,” the former high school basketball player told a local NBC affiliate in 2017. “We were all about defense, box outs, rebounds and assists, so I consider myself a non-shooting point guard, but if I have to put up an open 3, I’ll be happy to take it.”
The little-known conservative governor serving in his second term is one of the eight candidates who made the debate stage. According to polling by Morning Consult, 61% of Republican primary voters said they had never heard of Burgum, a former tech executive.
“We’re in a very different spot than almost anybody else on the stage because virtually everyone else has got almost 100% name recognition. And we’re a long way from that. We’re at the other end of that spectrum,” Burgum said on a Politico podcast last week. “So there’s a little bit of solving the ‘Doug who?’ problem.”
