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Kelly Armstrong

Kelly Michael Armstrong (born October 8, 1976) is an American lawyer and politician serving as the U.S. representative for North Dakota's at-large congressional district since 2019. A member of the Republican Party, he served as the North Dakota state senator from the 36th district from 2012 to 2018 and chair of the North Dakota Republican Party from 2015 until 2018. On January 23, 2024, he announced he would not seek re-election in 2024, instead opting to run in the 2024 North Dakota gubernatorial election.

Early life and education

Armstrong graduated from Dickinson High School in 1995. He earned a Bachelor of Arts in psychology from the University of North Dakota in 2001 and a Juris Doctor from the University of North Dakota School of Law in 2003, after spending his first year of law school at the College of William & Mary. He is a member of the Sigma Chi fraternity.

Career

Armstrong was a partner at Reichert Armstrong, with offices in Grand Forks and Dickinson, before his Congressional election. He served as the North Dakota State Senator from the 36th district from 2013 to 2018 and chaired the North Dakota Republican Party from 2015 to 2018.

U.S. House of Representatives

Elections

2018

In February 2018, Armstrong announced his candidacy for the United States House of Representatives. He was endorsed by the North Dakota Republican Party at its state party convention in April 2018. Armstrong won the November 6 election with 60.2% of the vote. He resigned his seat in the North Dakota Legislature on November 7 and took office in Congress in January 2019, replacing Kevin Cramer, who was elected to the United States Senate.

2020

Armstrong ran for reelection and won on November 3, with 68.96% of the vote.

2022

Armstrong won reelection on November 8, receiving 62.2% of the vote.

Tenure

Armstrong was one of a coalition of seven Republicans who did not support their colleagues' efforts to challenge the results of the 2020 presidential election on January 6, 2021. These seven signed a letter that, while giving credence to election fraud allegations made by President Donald Trump, said Congress did not have the authority to influence the election's outcome.

On July 19, 2022, Armstrong and 46 other Republican representatives voted for the Respect for Marriage Act, which would codify the right to same-sex marriage in federal law. Armstrong was nearly censured in a 26-28 vote during a state party meeting for his vote.

In September 2022, Armstrong was one of 39 Republicans to vote for the Merger Filing Fee Modernization Act of 2022, an antitrust package that would crack down on corporations for anti-competitive behavior.

On June 14, 2023, Armstrong voted to table the first censure bill against Adam Schiff, finding the $16 million fine in the first censure to be an excess of Congressional power. Former President Donald Trump called for all twenty Republicans who voted against to be "primaried". He would support the second attempt a week later when the text was removed.

Armstrong voted to provide Israel with support following 2023 Hamas attack on Israel.

During November 2023, Armstrong voted against the censuring of Democratic representative Rashida Tlaib on the grounds of antisemitism after her comments against Israel. Later in the month, Armstrong was picked to fill the empty seat in the House judiciary committee left when member Mike Johnson was elected Speaker of the House, which was followed by his re-election announcement.

In December 2023, Armstrong joined 105 house republicans in expelling George Santos on a House ethics committee report conclusion that he had broken federal law.

Committee assignments

Committee on Energy and Commerce (Vice Chair)
- Subcommittee on Energy, Climate, and Grid Security
- Subcommittee on Innovation, Data, and Commerce
- Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations

Committee on the Judiciary
- Subcommittee on Constitution, Civil Rights, and Civil Liberties
- Subcommittee on Immigration and Citizenship
- Subcommittee on Antitrust, Commercial, and Administrative Law
Judiciary Select Subcommittee on the Weaponization of the Federal Government

Caucus memberships

Republican Governance Group
Friends of Norway Caucus (co-chair)
Fire Services Caucus
Bipartisan Mental Health & Substance Use Disorder Task Force
Air Force Caucus
Coal Caucus
Rural Broadband Caucus
Northern Border Caucus
Northern Border Security Caucus
National Guard and Reserve Caucus
Caucus on Youth Sports
Sportsmen's Caucus
Republican Study Committee

2024 gubernatorial election

On January 23, 2024, Armstrong announced he would not run for re-election, instead opting to run for Governor of North Dakota after incumbent Doug Burgum announced he would not run for a third term.

He declared the points he’d focus on as lower taxes, cutting regulations, and bolstering the states workforce.

Armstrong faces Lt. Governor Tammy Miller for the NDGOP nomination. If Armstrong succeeds, he will face Democratic-NPL candidate Merrill Piepkorn and independent Michael Coachman.

Armstrong and Miller have kept an aggressive primary battle, with Armstrong being the first to release attack ads. Armstrong would later receive criticism for releasing an ad calling Miller “Tall-Tale Tammy” in which he used AI generate sources.

Armstrong has received endorsements from Secretary of State Michael Howe and U.S. Senator John Hoeven. Miller, however, received Governor Burgum’s support, stating North Dakota did not need a lawyer in the office.