A Republican, he was elected to the open seat vacated by Minnesota Governor Tim Pawlenty in 2002.

He also served in Vietnam in 1969 as a lieutenant in the U.S. Marine Corps, earning two Navy Commendation Medals with one a Combat V. He retired from the Marine Corps Reserve in 1995 at the rank of lieutenant colonel.

[1][2] As a legislator, he focused on the issues of education, transportation, tax reduction, small business promotion, and health care reform.

[2] In the November 2008 general election, Wardlow was unseated by Democrat Mike Obermueller in his bid for a fourth term.

[3] His son, Doug Wardlow, subsequently ran for the same seat in the 2010 general election, unseating Obermueller.