Commissioner
Conner Swanson was named North Dakota Health and Human Services commissioner after being appointed by Gov. Kelly Armstrong on August 13, 2026, effective August 29.
Swanson served as a senior advisor in the Governor’s Office since Armstrong and Lt. Gov. Michelle Strinden took office in December 2024. His portfolio included DHHS, the largest agency in state government with an approved two-year budget of over $5.7 billion, including federal funds, and a team of nearly 2,500 authorized FTEs. The DHHS commissioner is a member of the governor’s Cabinet. Swanson succeeds Pat Traynor, who took a civil service leave from his role as executive director of Dakota Medical Foundation to serve full-time as interim commissioner of DHHS starting in June 2025.
A Bowman native, Swanson previously served as a policy advisor and communications director for Armstrong from 2020 to 2024 during Armstrong’s tenure as North Dakota’s lone U.S. representative in Congress, and as senior advisor to the U.S. House Budget Committee. He also served in the U.S. Department of the Interior during the first Trump administration and as assistant to the North Dakota House Majority Leader.
While attending North Dakota State University, Swanson completed internships for then-U.S. Rep. Rick Berg and U.S. Sen. John Hoeven. He earned a master’s degree in natural resources management from NDSU in 2017.
Agency Phone: (701) 328-2310