New South Dakota Political News post: SDGOP’s “Generation Next”

@SoDakCampaigns

I have a new long-form post up at South Dakota Political News tonight which you can preview..

20 years ago, we were more geographically diverse in who served in elected office. Now, we seem to be coalescing to certain areas. I think that trend will continue will more concentration to our population centers as we cruise towards the next decade.

While it had already been broken at the Federal level, Kristi Noem shattered the glass ceiling for who we consider for leadership.  And looking at the current makeup of the legislature, many of the more dynamic potential candidates moving up through the ranks look a lot different than they did a decade ago.

Absent a drastic change in political landscape, I think we’re going to remain fairly red.. but we may start to see a bit more purple shading in Sioux Falls.  And I’ll just stop there, as this post will get far too long and too far afield if I don’t. As opposed to talking about 2030’s environment – let’s talk about who to watch.

With that, let’s consider and predict what the SDGOP’s “Generation Next” – the future class of elected leaders – is going to look like.

Read the entire article here.

19 thoughts on “New South Dakota Political News post: SDGOP’s “Generation Next””

  2. Pat you circled a great group all well respected and liked. Obviously there are some college students unknown today to the political nerds who will become top tiered in SD politics on both sides of the aisle someday. Also just from casual observations there are young sleepers who are gaining respect and have leadership within them if they choose to go there.
    Some people hate caucus. I find it the highlight of every legislative day where the souls of honest politicians are slightly exposed.

      1. Young Mr. Brunner should be on this list. He’s a gamer, he plays chess while others are checkering. Watch for him to leap a couple notches. that’s grudznick’s hope.

  3. I’m kind of surprised you didn’t include Castleberry in the grouping of Davis, Tobin, and Rehfeldt.

    Not long ago I would’ve included Jon Hansen on a list like this. He’ll be Speaker in 2023 so he is not going anywhere, but I think he’s alienated too many people over the last year.

    Lastly, what does Kent Peterson do next? He’s young, savvy, and experienced. Not sure if he has higher ambitions or if he’ll tap out when he’s term-limited.

    1. I have others I think could be there in 2030, but I had to cut it off somewhere. Josh Haeder is one. Kent was another and I’m with you, I’d love to see Jessica continue to move up – I’m a dedicated Jessica fan.

      One factor I looked at is geography. There are not a lot of people from the Hills who have been able to run successfully in recent years mainly because the votes are more and more in the east 1/4 of the state. I think that trend is going to continue as the population along the 129 corridor increases, and rural populations shrink.

      Residents of the Black Hills area are going to find it harder and harder to compete, such as when Russell & Fitzgerald were running for AG. In Brookings, I think we only saw them twice, possibly, before convention. That was a huge handicap. In South Dakota, we still want to know who we’re voting for.

      1. All fair points.

        After 2010, there was a DWC post similar to this, something like the 40 under 40 in SDGOP politics. One difference is that it also included operatives. You should consider a post shedding some light on the behind-the-scenes players. Some are well-known, Skjonsberg, Glodt, Nelson, Lauck, etc. But who else and who will be the next generation? Mortenson kind of fits that mold as Dusty’s confidante, but he’s now in elected office too.

  4. I think the most perceptive and thought provoking is your list of Democrats you see as potentially being of influence. Great job Pat

    1. Troy, do you mean legislators named by Pat who only “identify” as Republican but have voting records that show they are actually Democrats.

  5. interesting list…definitely ALL middle of the road Republicans. Add these names: Jessica Castleberry, Chris Johnson, Rebecca Reimer, David Wheeler, Bethany Soye, Jon Hansen in the legislative group….each from the more conservative wing of the party.
    Constitutional Offices: Josh Haeder for sure. Maybe Dan Nelson, Brookings County States Attorney or Daniel Haggar, Minnehaha County States Attorney.
    And don’t leave Larry Rhoden off this list.

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