This was not expected this afternoon. Former State Federation of Republican Women leader Catherine Barranco is going to assume her husband‘s place in the campaign for State Auditor.
From the Dakota Scout:
Sioux Falls City Councilor David Barranco announced Friday in an op-ed published in The Dakota Scout that he is stepping away from the campaign for state auditor. However, Catherine Barranco — a Republican organizer and conservative activist — will seek the GOP nomination for the constitutional office at next month’s South Dakota Republican Party convention in Rapid City in his place.
“Over the last 12 months, David, our sons and I have attended Lincoln Day dinners and candidate forums statewide. Regardless of his declining health, David never stopped fighting for the people. But after he received a grim diagnosis, he asked me to pick up the banner and assume his candidacy,” Catherine Barranco said in a statement provided to The Scout on Friday afternoon.
How cool! David and Catherine have always made a wonderful team. What a great way to extend that teamwork through troubled times. All the best to them. <3
Anyone else think it’s weird that you find out your husband has serious cancer and your first step is to run for political office? How about maybe take some family time?? Will not be voting for her
No. It is not weird. Being the spouse of a cancer patient is tough and having something to do outside the home is a necessary distraction. It’s either that or take up heavy drinking.
Yes. Delegates won’t go for it.
Is she going to live in Pierre or Sioux Falls? If Sioux Falls, with a sick husband how often will she be in Pierre with young kids? If he has stage 4 cancer running for a office is a tough ask. Good people but its a legit issue. Plus i assume now others will get into the race.
West River Voter perhaps you can be excused for your ignorance about the expanse of the Avera Health System.
Mr Barranco is receiving oncology treatment through Avera. If he is in Sioux Falls he can be treated there, but Avera has an entire cancer treatment center in Pierre, so treatment can be continued, without interruption, there. The doctors and nurse practitioners teleconference. I know this because my husband is receiving treatment in both Brookings and Sioux Falls, with the same oncology team. Currently he has been alternating visits between the two locations. When he is in Brookings for treatments he visits with the nurse practitioner via teleconference.
If the Barranco family does end up moving to Pierre, Mr Barranco will not have to change oncologists. Nobody needs to worry about that.
Who else are you planning on voting for then?
I don’t care for it. Not now. David should get well, and Catherine can run for this or something else next time.
Guys, to each their own. The Barrancos can certainly make the decision that’s best for them without judgment.
Running for office means your judgement is under scrutiny. So no, they will be judged by their ability to look at this situation and voters will decide if this was a reasonable decision. Seems like it strikes many as not what they would do, and likely not in the best interest of the citizens.
Wishing him success with treatment.
Great people and glad to support them. Everyone’s journey is their own. I’m sure this works for them.
Praying for the family, however, no thanks hard pass.
If she is able to serve and serve well, she should not be prevented.
Had no idea so many sexists were readers here. Nobody would expect a man to quit working if his wife were sick. It’s really quite astonishing.
BAH. Why can’t the GOP run some actual qualified fellows, or ladies, for these jobs? We have the wife of a formerly barely qualified fellow running for an office and her only qualification is being married to a guy who unfortunately got cancer, and an out-of-state supposed felon who has declared bankruptcy a logger’s fistful of times running for another office that governs all our money.
And why can’t democrats beat them?
you didn’t read the article about her past employment, did you?
Bachelor’s and Master degrees in Economics, worked in a Walmart corporate division, and had some experience working with the SEC.
Her bachelor’s is from Harvard and her Master’s from Oxford. She is better qualified than David or most anyone else who might decide to run.
Jim you always bring wisdom and intellect into every conversation. Thank you for being a constant voice of reason. That long drive to Oklahoma City will always be one of my highlights!
Can we get her to enter the governors race? Too late? Darn it.
Why doesn’t Rikki run?
Who is Rikki?
What an awful person you are. Who said she isn’t qualified? What don’t you like about his qualifications? Seems all you do on this site is bitch.
Do some researc. All you do on this site is bloviate. Usually without any facts.
Oof. A rare swing-and-a-miss from my old pal Grudznick. You’d very much enjoy either Barranco’s presence at your CWCS brekky.
You dont like felons who have declared bankruptcy multiple times being in office? Boy, Grudz, have I got some bad news for you…..
Grudz brings up a great point. This isn’t the candidate to lose sleep over. That guy is treasurer candidate Texan Heath Shields. He’s had multiple personal bankruptcies, pleaded guilty to prostitution charges and felony drug possession. Plus, he pulled a gun, fired a shot when his neighbor was snow plowing a road in Custer County two years ago (all facts according to The Dakota Scout). Is this the criminal we want to have access to the state’s bank account and keys to the unclaimed property vault?
Absolutely not true. Catherine has extensive business experience and degrees in economics. She is running, in part, for David’s legacy. She is a force of nature and an exceedingly bright person. She will make a great state auditor.
Care to explain why she is not qualified???
My heart goes out to the Barranco family in the wake of David’s illness. They are a great and loving family and take their public service seriously. I’m confident they carefully weighed this difficult decision together. I have had the privilege and pleasure of working with Catherine when she was the President of SDFRW and I can say that her ability to multitask and meet challenging demands, while balancing her family life, has already been proven. Her resilience in the face of adversity is second to none and has earned my respect. I pray that David will recover from this diagnosis and I support Catherine in this decision to press forward in this endeavor. She most definitely possesses the necessary qualities, education, and skills to make her a natural for this role.
The real question is IS SHE QUALIFIED?
A better question is, can you read?
If you had bothered to read the article linked above, you would see that she is qualified
If I was a convention delegate your tone might have just cost her a vote.
And who else would your vote go to?
A third party getting frustrated with you would cause you to vote for someone else? Wtf?
so many functionally illiterate sexists here….
I’ve known Catherine personally for years, and she is genuinely one of the strongest people I know.
People are allowed to grieve and hurt for what the Barranco family is going through. But strong people also eventually keep moving forward and continue fighting for what they believe in.
When I was going through my own stuff at Mayo Clinic, my wife and I doubled down and made family decisions too. When your back is against the wall, you keep moving forward. You lean on your faith, your family, and your purpose. I see a lot of that same strength in Catherine.
A lot of people asking if Catherine Barranco is qualified clearly don’t know her background. She graduated from Harvard, studied economics at Oxford, worked in corporate leadership tied to Walmart’s Bentonville operations, owned a business, taught math, and spent years helping build conservative organizations here in South Dakota.
Whether people agree with her politically or not, pretending she’s unqualified just isn’t reality.
I think this is great! You got my vote Miss Catherine. Where do I send money for her campaign. She is highly qualified. I’ll
Nope, so weird. TOO WEIRD
It’s the state auditors office, yes this is very weird.
In the last month, John Fitzgerald entered the AG race, Melissa Hull entered the treasurer’s race, Monroe dropped out for treasurer, and the only person running for Auditor dropped out, with his wife entering the race.
After June 2nd, many others will join these races. It feels like a lot will depend on who wins the primaries.
I suspect additional candidates will enter the AG race, the auditor, and possibly the Treasurer.
Look for another SOS candidate also
When my dad had stage four cancer, my mother started drinking too much. I will never forget watching her standing at the kitchen sink just staring out the window and slugging back a gin and tonic. My brother was noticing the same things were happening when he visited. Dad said he would talk to her about it, and she got better after that. She threw herself into her floral business. Maybe she needed him to tell her she needed to focus on something else.
Now I have a husband with stage 4 and I have thrown myself into landscaping and gardening. Having 20 acres to play with helps a lot. If it is just too anxiety-provoking to stay in the house I can go outside. Smell the flowers, the fresh cut grass, the air after a storm.
Worrying about the results of the next scan eats you up, There is an ad for Ibrance, a drug for metastatic breast cancer, with the message “live in the moment.” Enjoy what is happening in your life right now. Don’t let anxiety about the future ruin the present.
The other thing you have to do if your spouse has a dire diagnosis is you have to start imagining your own future, especially if you might find yourself widowed with dependent children. You have to reassess your career path. The Mommy track is a really bad place to be if your husband dies and you don’t have a Plan B.
The very nasty comments here from sexists who think a woman’s place is in the home, illiterates who didn’t bother to read the article linked above, and people who have no idea what it is like to have a spouse with a potentially terminal diagnosis, are really unfortunate. You have no idea what you are talking about. Just pray you never find out.
I’ve also had the privilege of working with Catherine while she was president of SDFRW. Her experience, dedication, and education make her more than qualified for the position. Our state would be very fortunate to have such a smart and dedicated person working on our behalf.
Some of the cynical comments on here are disappointing. If the roles were reversed and David asked Catherine to stay home while he continued the campaign, nobody would blink an eye. Strong people keep moving forward, even when life gets unbelievably hard.
I’ve known David and Catherine for years. They care deeply about their family, their faith, and serving others. Catherine stepping up isn’t political theater — it’s strength. Praying for the entire Barranco family.