Lt. Governor Venhuizen to Serve as Rhoden for Governor Campaign Chair
Pierre, SD – Today, Governor Larry Rhoden announced that Lt. Governor Tony Venhuizen will serve as Campaign Chairman of Rhoden for Governor for the historic 2026 run-off election.
Lt. Governor Venhuizen will take a leave of absence from most policy responsibilities in the Governor’s Office.
“One of the best decisions I made was picking Tony to be my running mate,” said Governor Larry Rhoden. “When we need a leader to help lead a team, he gets it done. Now, I’m asking him to step up in this campaign capacity to help us deliver a win in this campaign and keep South Dakota Open for Opportunity.”
Tony Venhuizen serves as the 40th Lieutenant Governor of South Dakota. Venhuizen earned his bachelor’s degree in political science and history from South Dakota State University in 2005 and his juris doctorate from the University of South Dakota Knudson School of Law in 2008. He represented District 13, which includes portions of Lincoln and Minnehaha counties, in the South Dakota State Legislature from 2023-2025, including as vice chair of the House Appropriations Committee. In addition to his legislative service, Venhuizen served for ten years in the Governor’s Office, including time as chief of staff to Governor Dennis Daugaard and Governor Kristi Noem.
“Governor Rhoden has trusted me in a number of leadership capacities, and I’ve been honored to help him deliver results in those roles,” said Lt. Governor Tony Venhuizen. “I’ve ran and won gubernatorial campaigns before, and I look forward to bringing that same experience to help Governor Rhoden keep South Dakota strong, safe, and free.”
Ian Fury will continue in the role of Campaign Manager, and he and Lt. Governor Venhuizen will share leadership responsibilities for the Rhoden for Governor campaign.
“Our team in the primary was small but mighty – only three paid staff,” said Ian Fury, Campaign Manager at Rhoden for Governor. “Tony was a huge help advising me all along, and I’m thrilled to have someone with his skills and experience now formally serving this campaign.”
Venhuizen and his wife, Sara, have been married for more than 20 years and have three school-age children: Henry, Elizabeth, and Madeleine. Sara is an electrical engineer and a distinguished alumna of South Dakota State University. The family attends Holy Spirit Catholic Church in Sioux Falls.
The gubernatorial runoff is July 28, 2026.
Learn more about the Rhoden for Governor campaign at [GovernorLarryRhoden.com]GovernorLarryRhoden.com.
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The runoff gives voters a serious choice:
1. Very Bad or
2. Much Worse
Another yawn from Team Rhoden
I wouldn’t expect this to be exciting but I applaud good transparency. The Lt. Governor is being open about his duties and changes which provides openness and accountability to the tax payers that he isn’t doing campaign activities on state time/funding. The “chair” is not the big news here to me but the good governance of doing this and announcing it
Interesting. Given the showing in Minnehaha County, one might have concluded that there was serious consideration to throwing dead weight overboard.
17% wasn’t good? If I’m team Doeden I’m very happy with the decision.
Never Trumper Tony to the rescue!
grudznick abides
Let’s make the LG also Campaign Chairman because he did such a great job delivering votes in Sioux Falls during the primary. WTAF? They pick the poster guy of establishment politicians to lead the campaign in a race that was just won by the anti-establishment. Brilliant.
Firing Ian would probably net votes of the SDGOP wing who want fewer of Noem’s little stooges hanging around Pierre. Particularly that pedo-stached carpetbagging twat.
You stay classy, San Diego
Appointing the poster boy of establishment politics in a race won by the anti-establishment seems really like a poor decision. And he apparently delivered no help to Rhoden in Sioux Falls during the first round.
Harsh, but true.
Larry Rhoden is a dead duck, and Tony is a liberal-socialist in our Republican Party,
Every year, the legislature brings 250-500 bills, and some very stupid ones, such as “Giving the B.A.R Associated Members Immunity from all actions, activties, things they do” — you see how stupid the legislature has become? Not only that, but the growing sentiment in the Legislature, is “they want to pass a law that restricts 16 year olds from getting married” when it has been our common belief that “teenagers” are adults, to whom begin at age 13, to start acting like adults, forming relationships, providing for their families by getting a job, to driving a vehicle at age 14, to forming adult like relationships by 16 (married if they so choose). “WE’ have had a very bad legislature, led by some stupid people for the past decade, and if these bafoons wish to take more of our rights away, at least we have TOBY DOEDEN in the Governor Office to VETO every one of their stupid bills over the next 4 (maybe 8 years). “WE” will spend the next 4 years working alongside a lame duck Legislature, while using “Executive Action” completely go through every State Department, Office, and Agency to slash the budget by 50%, especially in Department of Social Services (C.P.S) where it gets more than $2,000,000,000 billion from the Federal Govt, by stealing your Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid dollars. Vote Toby Doeden
Wingnuts speaks!
I do not understand this post at all, other than I agree the legislature passes some pretty stupid bills.
Just yesterday I was reminded of one of their stupid bills: I received my annual letter from Avera, telling me I have dense breasts. It was the annual reminder I have tits. In case I forgot, you know.
The legislature requires them to send me this letter, every year, because one woman said nobody told her she had dense breasts. Somehow she needed that information, but I have never been able to figure out why I need it. It doesn’t mean I can only buy bras at Victoria’s Secret or anything like that. It only means that after every mammogram, I get a letter in my snail mail telling me I have tits.
The bill requiring this letter be sent was stupid. The absurdity of it is unreal.
The nasty comments are odd. The second round of the race started. Best person win
I’m sincerely appalled that I agree with you : /
Lee, you were kicked out of the group, and we will never allow your son Jake to gain entry back into the group. You did enough damage.
So he waited until the runoff to be all in?
This is a strange release since it seems he could have been doing this all along.
I just can’t figure out why they would appoint the LG as the campaign chairman. He represents the establishment as much as anyone. They could have given the chairman title to someone who might have actually helped win votes in Sioux Falls or elsewhere. But then again, appointing a LG that could’ve helped win would have been a good idea as well. Taking 4th place with 17% in Sioux Falls was not good at all and evidence that your LG didn’t help one bit.
He likely wanted the position to help himself as much as possible. Get back in the room with donors. Tony loves Tony.
Today at the Conservatives with Common Sense breakfasting, the Opening Rant will poke fun at the District numbered 29 and celebrate three steps away from out-of-state insanerism.
It is crazy that we are trying to elect another seasoned citizen to lead government. We just got through the Biden years of staffers running the country.