Edward Thomas Schafer (8 August 1946-) was the Republican Governor of North Dakota from 15 December 1992 to 15 December 2000 (succeeding George A. Sinner and preceding John Hoeven) and the United States Secretary of Agriculture from 28 January 2008 to 20 January 2009 (succeeding Mike Johanns and preceding Tom Vilsack).
Biography[]
Edward Thomas Schafer was born in Bismarck, North Dakota, and he worked for his family's manufacturing company before serving as its president from 1978 to 1985. Schafer went on to serve as Governor from 1992 to 2000, dealing with budget crunches during his eight years as state budget-maker in the Capitol; he supported the diversification of North Dakota's economy and an expansion of high-speed internet. He briefly served as President George W. Bush's last Secretary of Agriculture from 2008 to 2009, and he served as acting president of the University of North Dakota from January to July 2016.