North Dakota Attorney General Wayne Stenehjem died unexpectedly Friday. He was 68.
Stenehjem was the longest serving attorney general in North Dakota history, having held the office since 2000. His cause of death remained unclear Saturday.
Allan Stenehjem, Wayne’s brother, told Bismarck NBC affiliate KFYR that Stenehjem was dealing with an ulcer that may have been inflamed. However, Allan told the Bismarck Tribune that his brother didn’t have any known health issues.
“We know Wayne was a widely respected and well-known public figure, but we ask that his family be allowed time to grieve in private,” Stenehjem’s office said in a statement.
Stenehjem, a Republican, spent nearly his entire adult life in North Dakota politics. He was elected to the state legislature in 1976 at age 23. He spent four years there before winning a North Dakota Senate seat in 1980. Stenehjem served 20 years in that seat before running for state attorney general in 2000 and winning the first of six consecutive terms.
In all six elections, Stenehjem won at least 55% of the vote. He also ran unsuccessfully for governor in 2016, losing the Republican primary to current governor Doug Burgum.
“Like so many North Dakotans who treasured his friendship and admired him for his more than four decades of exceptional service to our state, we are absolutely devastated by the passing of Attorney General Wayne Stenehjem,” Burgum said. “Wayne embodied public service, both as a dedicated legislator and the longest-serving attorney general in our state’s 133-year history.”
Stenehjem had announced in December that he would not seek a seventh term. Gov. Burgum will appoint someone to fill Stenehjem’s seat until the next state attorney general election in the fall of 2022.
