BISMARCK — North Dakota Gov. Kelly Armstrong has appointed his longtime communications and advisory staffer to the state's top health office.
Armstrong on Thursday, Aug. 13, named his senior advisor, Conner Swanson, as Health and Human Services commissioner. The 33-year-old Bowman, North Dakota, native will take over the state's largest agency on Aug. 29.
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He replaces interim Commissioner Patrick Traynor, who oversaw HHS as it awarded nearly $200 million in federal Rural Health Transformation grants.
“From Capitol Hill to the State Capitol, Conner has navigated complex policy issues with skill and a depth of understanding that will serve North Dakotans well — a great example being his behind-the-scenes leadership on the Rural Health Transformation Program that is deploying hundreds of millions of dollars in federal grants to improve health outcomes across our state,” Armstrong said in a statement. “We look forward to Conner building on the work of outgoing Commissioner Traynor and the team at DHHS to make North Dakota the healthiest state in the nation.”
Swanson said in a statement that he is grateful for the opportunity, noting he worked closely with HHS during Armstrong's gubernatorial term.
“I have seen firsthand their commitment to the mission and the people we serve, and I am thrilled to join HHS and help build upon that energy and dedication," Swanson said.
HHS employs more than 2,800 workers and has a two-year budget of more than $5.7 billion. The agency's commissioner sits on Armstrong’s 19-member Cabinet.
Swanson was a deputy press secretary for the U.S. Department of the Interior for almost a year in 2020 before he joined Armstrong’s Congressional team as communications director in December 2020. Armstrong served as North Dakota’s lone U.S. representative from 2019 to 2024, when he was elected governor.
Armstrong named Swanson his senior advisor in March 2024, a title that continued into the governorship. Swanson worked in communications and political positions prior to his work with Armstrong, including as a marketing and communications partner for Waznek Construction and a political consultant for advertising company Odney.
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Armstrong thanked Traynor for his service.
“Pat’s boundless energy and passion for improving the health and well-being of all North Dakota citizens reverberated through not only DHHS but our entire administration,” Armstrong said, calling Traynor’s tenure “brief but impactful.”
Traynor was the Dakota Medical Foundation executive director before becoming interim commissioner in June 2025. He is the second interim HHS leader since Commissioner Wayne Salter.
Salter, who was a former Texas Health and Human Services executive, was appointed HHS commissioner by former Gov. Doug Burgum in January 2024 but did not continue his job under Armstrong.
Salter took over for Christopher Jones, who was a division senior vice president of strategy and business development for Catholic Health Initiatives. Jones headed the Department of Human Services starting in 2017 and took on the HHS commissioner post when the state merged the health and human services department in 2022.
Jones stepped down in September 2023.