Gov. John Hoeven's promises to develop well-paid jobs in North Dakota's economy have gone unfulfilled, and the Republican incumbent puts a misleading gloss on state employment data, his Democratic opponent says.

"We're not creating quality jobs," Joe Satrom said Tuesday. "That was a major theme of the last campaign, the Hoeven campaign for governor in 2000 … Let's create jobs. Jobs, jobs, jobs. They aren't there."

Satrom and his running mate, former Fargo state Sen. Deb Mathern, held press events in Fargo, Grand Forks, Bismarck and Minot on Tuesday to begin their campaign as a team.

Early this month, state Democratic convention delegates endorsed Satrom as their candidate for governor, and chose Mathern to run for lieutenant governor.

In Bismarck, Satrom referred to a recent Hoeven campaign statement that North Dakota had gained 2,850 new jobs last year, while South Dakota gained 900 and Minnesota lost 3,200.

Many of the reported North Dakota job gains came in government, while others were low-paying service jobs, Satrom said. At the same time, the state lost better-paying manufacturing positions, he said.

North Dakota's university system accounted for 400 new jobs last year, a Job Service North Dakota memo said. Local governments added another 400 positions, mostly in education, while federal border patrol and airport security jobs added another 200.

Cory Fong, a Hoeven campaign spokesman, said the governor has been using North Dakota's colleges to promote more private job development, through worker training and other initiatives.

Hoeven has proposed earmarking $50 million to establish "centers of excellence" on North Dakota campuses, which would help to foster private job creation, Fong said.

North Dakota's health care, construction and finance industries also saw job growth during 2003, at average annual wages ranging from $30,000 to $34,000, he said.

Satrom said North Dakota's recent gains in personal income have been goosed by North Dakota's energy industry and favorable farm commodity prices, which he said were the best in his memory.

Satrom, who has worked as a regional conservation official for Ducks Unlimited in Bismarck, said Tuesday that he was leaving his job to campaign full time.

Mathern, who is president of a Fargo credit union that serves public school teachers, said she is meeting with her board of directors Thursday to discuss going on leave.