In August 2016, Klippert was appointed as the commander of the Washington State Guard,[1] a position that he was directed to retire from in December, 2021.

[2] In August 2021, Klippert visited South Dakota to attend a symposium organized by MyPillow CEO Mike Lindell, known for actively promoting false claims of fraud in the 2020 presidential election.

[5] The letter also requested the decertification of state electors from 2020 and falsely claimed that the Arizona audit found evidence of fraud.

Preliminary results from the August 2 non-partisan primary indicate that Stephanie Barnard and Patrick Guettner, both Republicans, will compete to succeed him in the November general election.

Klippert ran in the Republican primary against former insurance corporation CEO Mike McGavick for the Senate seat held by Democrat Maria Cantwell.