Attorney General Heidi Heitkamp is one of North Dakota's most successful and popular state office holders.  Currently serving her second term, she won re-election in 1996 by a margin of 64 percent.

As Attorney General, Heitkamp has made her mark as an advocate for consumer protection and the safety and well-being of North Dakota's children.  She has worked to ease the toll of family violence and juvenile crime, and to provide quality service to the state's law enforcement agencies.  As a member of the Industrial Commission, she has been a strong advocate for economic development and job growth in North Dakota.

On the national scene, Heidi was instrumental in securing the $206 billion national tobacco settlement.  She negotiated on behalf of North Dakota and thirteen other states, securing more than $800 million for North Dakota.  President Bill Clinton has appointed her to two trade advisory committees, and she has negotiated on trade issues for the National Association of Attorneys General.

Heidi Heitkamp's supporters range from farm and business interests to labor and educators.  Her first formal endorsement came in October, at the state convention of the North Dakota AFL-CIO.  Heidi is a fourth-generation North Dakotan.  Born in Mantador, a small town in the southeast corner of the state, she is one of seven children. She lives in Mandan with her husband, Dr. Darwin Lange, and their two children, Alethea and Nathan.