In front of an excited crowd of supporters and well wishers…
A beaming United States Senator John Thune addressed the crowd with his thanks for a race well run, as he was surrounded on stage by his family.
What a great night to be a South Dakota Republican!
Thune Statement on Re-Election to U.S. Senate
SIOUX FALLS, S.D. — U.S. Sen. John Thune (R-S.D.) issued the following statement on his re-election to the U.S. Senate:
“Serving the people of South Dakota in the U.S. Senate has been one of the greatest privileges of my life, and I’m humbled by the opportunity to continue fighting for them in Washington, D.C.,” said Thune. “The Republican-led Senate has accomplished a lot of important things over the last few years for the American people, and no matter which party holds the majority next January, there’s still a lot of hard work that lies ahead. As U.S. senator, I’ve always worked to put South Dakota’s interests first, and that commitment to our great state will never change.
“No run for public office is won alone, which is why I want to thank Kimberley, Brittany, and Larissa for being my biggest supporters over the years. My family has grown quite a bit since my last election to the Senate. I’m blessed to have two strong, hard-working sons-in-law, a granddaughter, and another grandchild who’s on the way. It’s because of my family’s love and support that I’m continually inspired to serve.”
Thune was elected to the U.S. Senate in 2004 after defeating then-Minority Leader Tom Daschle and was re-elected in 2010, an election in which he ran unopposed.
During the 114th Congress, Thune serves as chairman of the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation, which has jurisdiction over rail transportation, among other areas. He also serves on the Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry and the Senate Committee on Finance. Thune is also chairman of the Senate Republican Conference, making him the third-ranking Republican in the U.S. Senate.
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Just got the word. This is happening very early in the night, by not a shocker.
A couple of trouble makers?
(I kid. Actually TJ Nelson and Ben Lee are good friends to the GOP. Thanks for all your efforts this year!)
Our Attorney General…. and possibly future Governor?
Fox News just called South Dakota for Thune. 15 minutes before any results are released.
They must have been following the race!
From the Hill:
Republicans are projected to keep their majority in the House, as expected.
ABC News and NBC News both made the projection after 8:30 p.m.
Only a handful of competitive seats had been determined when the projections were made, but Democrats faced tall odds at winning back the House given the GOP’s 30-seat majority.
And..
Democrats further struggled with candidate recruitment in many competitive districts that offered pickup opportunities in a presidential year, when voter turnout is higher.
As I’m waiting around fo polls to close, several politicos are talking about the issues with the ballot measures – and how many legislators in going door to door are hearing that there are too many of these out of state driven measures on the ballot – and it’s time that they do something about it.
People are talking about adjustments ranging from restrictions on out of state cash being infused into the races, to adjusting the vote threshold for Constitutional amendments.
The one point stressed is that whatever is to be done, it has to be an open, palms up process that meets with voter approval. South Dakota has a strong tradition with the process of referral and initiatives, and whatever form reform takes, it has to recognize that, and prevent it’s abuse.
I’m on location at the District in Sioux Falls, with “SDWC Election Central” up and operating.
Polls have now closed in Eastern South Dakota, with another hour and fifteen minutes until results will be released.
An Hour and fifteen minutes, you may ask? From the Secretary of State:
Election Results Cannot Be Released until 8:15pm Central Time
Pierre, SD – Secretary of State Shantel Krebs stated, “Julie Pearson, Pennington County Auditor called the Secretary of State’s office and reported to us that there was a fire incident at one of the polling locations (a school) in Pennington County. Voting was delayed for 15 minutes while voters and election workers went outside.”
The election workers took the ballot box containing all marked ballots along with the Voter Registration list with them as they exited the polling location.
Due to the fifteen minute delay caused by the fire incident the precinct will need to remain open an additional fifteen minutes. Closing at 7:15pm Mountain Time.
Election results will not be able to be displayed on the Secretary of State’s website or released by County Auditors until 8:15 pm Central Time as state law requires. Live results will be displayed at 8:30pm Central Time.
SDCL 12-20-17. Returns not disclosed until all polls in state closed. No public disclosure of the returns of state and federal elections in any primary or general election is permitted until each precinct-polling place in the state is closed. This provision applies to each precinct-polling place within the state.
#30#
So, just hang tight.
I’m getting prepped to head down to Sioux Falls for the GOP Victory party at the District. I’ll have all my equipment in tow, so stay tuned for coverage of tonight’s election!
This year’s long lines at the ballot box are a result of a couple of things. First, a very contentious presidential election driving participation numbers up. Secondly, what some of us might consider “the ballot from hell” with one of the longest lists of ballot measures in recent history.
So, where do I think these measures are going to land? I think the position of measures on the ballot will have something to do with it, as well as a propensity of people to vote NO when faced with overly long explanations and confusion. And there’s also a mix of how much advertising the measures have done.
|
Ballot Question |
Yes |
No |
|
AMENDMENT R: AN AMENDMENT TO THE SOUTH DAKOTA CONSTITUTION REGARDING POSTSECONDARY TECHNICAL |
59% |
41% |
|
AMENDMENT S: AN INITIATED AMENDMENT TO THE SOUTH DAKOTA CONSTITUTION TO EXPAND RIGHTS FOR CRIME VICTIMS |
52% |
48% |
|
AMENDMENT T: AN INITIATED AMENDMENT TO THE SOUTH DAKOTA CONSTITUTION TO PROVIDE FOR STATE LEGISLATIVE REDISTRICTING BY A COMMISSION |
57% |
43% |
|
AMENDMENT U: AN INITIATED AMENDMENT TO THE SOUTH DAKOTA CONSTITUTION LIMITING THE ABILITY TO SET STATUTORY INTEREST RATES FOR LOANS |
42% |
58% |
|
AMENDMENT V: AN INITIATED AMENDMENT TO THE SOUTH DAKOTA CONSTITUTION ESTABLISHING NONPARTISAN ELECTIONS |
48% |
52% |
|
INITIATED MEASURE 21: AN INITIATED MEASURE TO SET A MAXIMUM FINANCE CHARGE FOR CERTAIN LICENSED |
Toss Up |
Toss Up |
|
INITIATED MEASURE 22: AN INITIATED MEASURE TO REVISE STATE CAMPAIGN FINANCE AND LOBBYING LAWS, CREATE A PUBLICLY FUNDED CAMPAIGN FINANCE PROGRAM, CREATE AN ETHICS COMMISSION, AND APPROPRIATE FUNDS |
42% |
58% |
|
INITIATED MEASURE 23: AN INITIATED MEASURE TO GIVE CERTAIN ORGANIZATIONS THE RIGHT TO CHARGE FEES |
35% |
65% |
|
REFERRED LAW 19: AN ACT TO REVISE STATE LAWS REGARDING ELECTIONS AND ELECTION PETITIONS |
38% |
62% |
|
REFERRED LAW 20: AN ACT LOWERING THE STATE MINIMUM WAGE FOR NON-TIPPED EMPLOYEES UNDER AGE 18 |
35% |
65% |
In looking at it, I’m betting on the top three measures on the ballot to pass for a few different reasons.
Amendment R has had no real opposition of any sort, aside from a cursory notation against it in the ballot measure brochure. It has also had some advertising in favor of it, and there’s really no controversy attached to it.
Amendment S, a.k.a. Marsy’s Law, will be tighter, due to the opposition of many State’s Attorneys. However, as a concept, most are in favor of victim’s rights. And there’s the Kelsey Grammer ad. Arguably the single best and most recognizable ad of the entire election season. It’s a powerful argument, they’re towards the top of the ballot, and I think they’ll pull it off.
Amendment T. The GOP had to pick their battles, and ultimately, many adopted the same attitude I had – who cares? It’s not going to amount to a hill of beans, and the GOP will still be dominant. Although rejiggering districts in the short term will be a pain, there are bigger fish to fry.
The rest are more likely to end up in the loss column.
Amendment U was put on the ballot, but not effectively supported with advertising by the ballot measure sponsors. However, what it is doing is causing voter confusion between the two measures. I look to this one to go down, possibly by a substantial margin.
Amendment V has had a LOT of out of state money spent on it’s behalf. But I think the second of Slick Rick Weiland’s measures (after Amendment T being the first) will go down. Hiding party label is not a popular concept in red state South Dakota, and word is they haven’t been chasing after the issue west river very hard. If it’s even east river, as the votes move West River, the voters should come in and effectively kill it.
Initiated Measure 21 is my lone toss up. Midway among the ballot measures, only those concerned about it will be casting a “yea” vote, and I don’t know that the yes side effectively made their case before the floodgates of advertising opened up against it. With ads on either side saying No on U, Yes on 21, as well as Yes on U, No on 21, I think voters might be apt to just kill them both.
Even before the advertising started in earnest, polling such as Nielson Brothers were showing only 39% for, and 26% against, with 35% undecided. Once the No on Initiated Measure 21 groups got moving, I suspect numbers started moving against it in such a way that there’s no clear indication how the vote is going to go tonight. Whatever it is, I think it’s going to be close.
Initiated Measure 22, the bill to handout taxpayer dollars to politicians has had a lot of money thrown at it from either side. But both being down ballot, having state leaders against it, and bearing the title of “CREATE A PUBLICLY FUNDED CAMPAIGN FINANCE PROGRAM” as part of the measure, I think it’s toast.
Despite it’s cute advertising, Initiated Measure 23 is going to go down hard. You can take take that to the bank.
And RL 19 and 20 are going to go down, because people have lost interest at this point, and neither have had good reasons noted to vote for them.
Agree? Disagree? The floor is yours.