Noem Sets December 3 Nomination Deadline for Vacant Lawrence County House Seat

Pat Powers

Noem Sets December 3 Nomination Deadline for Vacant Lawrence County House Seat

PIERRE, S.D. – Governor-elect Kristi Noem set December 3 as the nomination deadline for the vacant Lawrence County House seat. The vacancy was created by the passing of Rep. Chuck Turbiville, who was reelected posthumously on November 6. Governor-elect Noem will appoint a legislator to serve during the 2019 and 2020 legislative sessions.

Those wishing to be considered for the appointment, or to offer nominations, should email Rachel Graves at [email protected] or at 605-773-3662. Nominations should include the candidate’s name, current physical address, telephone number, and relevant background information.

“Chuck Turbiville’s passing was a great loss to South Dakota, but especially to his district,” said Governor-elect Noem. “I appreciate the proactive input from many within Lawrence County as I move toward appointing a qualified, service-oriented individual to fill this seat. Together, I’m confident we will find a dedicated public servant to selflessly represent this district.”

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13 thoughts on “Noem Sets December 3 Nomination Deadline for Vacant Lawrence County House Seat”

  1. I thought only the governor could appoint legislators to fill unexpired terms. Based on this constitutional provision, it can be inferred from the press release that Gov. Daugaard has invited the Gov.-elect to make a recommendation (to Gov. Daugaard) for the person to be named by Gov. Daugaard to the vacant seat. Alternatively, the governor may have agreed to appoint no one before he leaves office, thereby giving Gov.-elect Noem the opportunity once she takes office.

    Either way, the press release takes a strange approach to the issue.

    1. I think it looks quite proactive on her part. Why wait to get input/nominations/feedback until January 5th when session is about to start? Presumably, she and Daugaard have discussed and I would infer that she’s going to make the appointment (which is right for 2019) so get the intel now. To me, this just shows how on the ball she is and forward thinking.

      And of course, had she not done it this way, I guarantee someone would be saying on 1-5=19 “well, she knew about this for over a month, why didn’t she do something about it proactively??” Can’t always win but I prefer this approach. I also think her wording was very thoughtful in regard to the Lawrence County ‘out of order’ procedures they pulled…

  2. Micheal,

    This appointment is exclusively Governor Noem’s. She will be sworn in before the current legislative term ends and the new one starts. There is no vacancy until Chuck doesn’t show up to be sworn in.

    There is no inference. She is just saying if you don’t get me a name by December 3 she will not take new nominations. I’m sure she wants to evaluate the potential appointments in time to make a decision so they can make arrangements to serve from January-March so I suspect she will make public her decision sooner than later.

    Finally, this press release looks vaguely similar to past invitations for nominations prior to appointments to vacancies by other Governors (maybe going back decades).

    1. Troy:

      Thanks for the clarification. I hadn’t thought about the condition that the vacancy doesn’t occur until he doesn’t show up for the new session.

      I wish that explanation had been part of the press release, as it is an unusual situation to have a legislative vacancy due to death of a successful candidate coupled with a change in governor.

      I agree with your characterization of the press release as vaguely similar to the standard issue, but I believe this situation called for special handling of the release. I’m much more of a government nerd than most politicos, observers, and journalists, so if I can trip up on the details here, I guarantee that others will too.

  4. Michael,

    I think too often politicians try to explain every detail. I’m refreshed she just was to the point: If interested, here is what you do by this date.

    You think too much. 🙂

    1. You’re probably right. I was thinking with my journalist’s hat on. It’s really helpful to me when press releases include backup info that adds understanding, even if the information isn’t used in the article. Of course, I tend to write mostly in-depth and analysis pieces.

  5. I suspect what she’s doing is getting the information, and likely announcing the decision, well in advance of session. While it couldn’t be finalized until the first day of session, it would be sad for Lawrence County to leave their Rep a step behind – scrambling to make arrangements to be in Pierre – and the legislative leadership shuffling to make things fit right. Making an announcement in mid-December would be good administration.

  7. She’s asserting herself as governor and she will be a good one. With that being said, it’s time for special elections to fill open seats in which there is more than one full session left. Would take a constitutional amendment.

  8. Thinking about the valued opinion from two on Kristie’s staff and a former Majority Leader in Rapid one must assume the residents of Deadwood and surrounding area will be represented extremely well by the person she fills to fill the unfillable shoes of Chuck Turbiville.

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