Mary Fitzgerald Announces Intent to Run Again as State Representative for District 31, Lawrence County, South Dakota.
Lawrence County, South Dakota – November 6, 2023.
Mary Fitzgerald, a sixth generation South Dakotan who also serves as the Chair of the Lawrence County Republican Party and Vice-Chair for the South Dakota State GOP, has announced her intention to run for re-election as the State Representative, District 31, Lawrence County.
“I am committed to ensuring Lawrence County has a strong advocate in Pierre, working to protect our shared values and what’s important to our state. I have the proven grit and determination to do what is right for Lawrence County, and South Dakota.” Fitzgerald is pro-life, pro-family, supports quality education, low taxes, limited government… and most of all freedom.
First elected in 2020, Fitzgerald was appointed to Joint Appropriations where she worked hard to learn the tedious process of setting the state’s budget and making sure tax dollars are wisely spent. As a first-year legislator, Mary was the sole legislator who successfully passed a public safety bill on marijuana use.
Re-elected in 2022, Fitzgerald currently serves on House Judiciary and is Vice-Chair of House Local Government committee.
Mary is a strong advocate for children, co-sponsoring a bill protecting child witnesses (victims) testifying in court. She also co-sponsored the Truth-In-Sentencing bill which clearly defined sentencing guidelines in South Dakota. Further, Fitzgerald carried the bill to eliminate the sales tax on groceries.
Representative Fitzgerald was endorsed by Governor Kristi Noem in 2022.
Mary is a graduate of BHSU, with a double major in Accounting and Business Administration. She’s married to John Fitzgerald, Circuit Court Judge. They have three grown children, all graduates of BHSU and USD School of Law. They are grandparents to six grandchildren… all residing in the Black Hills.
Fitzgerald’s dedication to public service and her tireless work for Lawrence County have earned her widespread respect and support from businesses, constituents, colleagues, and community leaders alike. Her passion for equitable representation, combined with her extensive experience and proven ability to get things done, make her the ideal candidate to continue serving as Lawrence County’s voice in Pierre.
Regarding Representative Fitzgerald – I am an imperfect but very effective person with a front row seat.
1 – responsive, she returns emails, solicits advice
2 – understands process, fiercely protects the interests of her constituents, even if that means being cautious and conservative in the short term regarding issues that may eventually win her constituents (and her) over – the burying of the hatchet so to speak
3 – inclusive and supportive of people who are new to the political arena, who do not share her personal views, but that seek to be respectfully involved in the process
4 – attentive, she doesn’t miss events and meetings and ferrets out details
5 – protective of Lawrence county’s interests
6 – not vengeful, if someone doesn’t vote the way she’d like, that’s it, life goes on, time to work through the next issue – I haven’t seen retaliatory punishment or exclusion, but she is also not a pushover
In my opinion, there is no reason to consider anyone else for the job.
Good job, Mary, and thank you.
The issues I’ll likely be championing as I work to achieve financial and economic success, pay back debts, fix things I’ve broken, and publish a book about our unique family: election integrity, more cannabis understanding and rights, truly “safe” safety measures, rampant domestic military involvement in markets/life, freedom in musical expression and more fair access to venues, better access to courts (effective, efficient torte, healthy market) and creation of a less risky technology industry for SD (enterprise software architecture). Spearfish City Limits is on the masthead of these personal initiatives.
Regardless of whether I get my way or not on any particular issue, I am confident that my voice is heard, which makes my representatives accountable to history, and I’m sure I’ll be held accountable one way or another, which keeps me honest and sharpens my product. I’m GLAD our district is NOT represented by a weak, hollow vessel.
That is all,
John Dale, MS MIS/Entrepreneurship
Spearfish, SD
The election success rate is too low, you shouldn’t have to “win votes” to get that job. We should just give more people a free pass, if you live in SD, and are in good standing with the GOP “inner party”, you should get an automatic spot as a legislator without having to do the vote gathering. What’s next, a bar exam for all graduates of law school?