Mayor Steve Allender just made things interesting for next years’ Rapid City Mayoral Contest, as he has announced he will not be a candidate for the office in 2023:
After serving two terms as mayor of South Dakota’s second largest city, Steve Allender confirmed to KOTA Territory News that he does not plan to seek re-election in 2023.
“One of my favorite questions people ask me is whether or not we have term limits in Rapid City,” Allender said in an interview. “And I tell them, no, we don’t need them. There is a natural length to things, and people become resistant to the same old faces and the same old ideas.”
It’s almost as good a position as the Sioux Falls Mayor if one wanted to raise their profile for future office, as it spans 5 legislative districts in the State’s only other media market of any size.
PIERRE, SOUTH DAKOTA – Today, the Kristi for Governor campaign launched a multi-week, six-figure ad buy featuring two new commercials. “LetRide” features Al Rieman, owner of Black Hills Harley Davidson, telling how Governor Noem’s leadership has been crucial to his business’s success. “C’mon Man – Educate, Don’t Indoctrinate” compares Rep. Jamie Smith’s liberal voting record to President Joe Biden, especially in the area of Critical Race Theory (CRT).
“Governor Noem’s actions were crucial to keeping the state open – to keeping our business open,” Al Rieman says in the “Let Freedom Ride” ad. “If we had lived under the mandates that were in a lot of other states, it could have shut our business down. I will be supporting Governor Noem, a quintessential South Dakotan.”
In 2021, Black Hills Harley Davidson led the world in Harley sales and broke the record for most revenue in one year at a Harley dealership. In her 2022 State of the State Address, Governor Noem also noted that “In the middle of a dangerous wildfire near Rapid City earlier this year, Black Hills Harley allowed their store to be used as the headquarters for the fire response. They gave our firefighters and first responders free use of their facilities and didn’t ask for anything in return.”
“Jamie Smith even voted to bring CRT to our kids’ classrooms,” the new version of the “C’mon Man” ad states. “Say ‘No’ to Jamie Smith.”
Under Governor Noem’s unwavering conservative leadership, South Dakota is thriving. Because of the Governor’s refusal to accept one-size-fits-all, big government overreach, South Dakota has the best economy in the nation, leads the nation in personal income growth, ranks number for new housing development, and our schoolchildren lead the nation in educational outcomes.
“South Dakota businesses are growing, thriving, and even setting records under Governor Noem’s principled leadership,” said Ian Fury, Communications Director at Kristi for Governor. “While Jamie Smith wants to allow divisive ideas like Critical Race Theory to infiltrate our classrooms, Governor Noem will continue focusing on making South Dakota the strongest state in America.”
PIERRE, S.D. – Today, Governor Kristi Noem sent a letter to the South Dakota State Legislature, thanking them for their continued emphasis on free and fair elections in South Dakota. In the letter, Governor Noem promised to continue working with legislators on election integrity in the upcoming legislative session. You can read the Governor’s letter here.
“It is our duty as elected officials to deliver free and fair elections — the people of South Dakota deserve no less. Those elections must have integrity,” said Governor Kristi Noem. “Our American form of government is built on the people’s voice, which they speak at the ballot box.”
Governor Noem was responding to a letter received from 24 state legislators last week. In their letter, the group of legislators praised the Governor’s past leadership in preserving the state’s election integrity. The Governor thanked lawmakers for their help in those efforts.
“I appreciate the attention of the legislature on this important issue, and I am proud of what we’ve accomplished together to strengthen South Dakota’s already excellent election laws,” continued Governor Noem.
Earlier this year, Governor Noem signed a ban on “Zuck Bucks” in South Dakota, prohibiting private funding of election costs.
Governor Noem stated that all elections in South Dakota should be conducted in a transparent fashion. She said the public needs to have faith in the voting process.
“That also includes ensuring that the right to vote is not tainted by illegal ballot harvesting or improperly ‘stuffed” ballot boxes,” wrote Governor Noem.
My time was largely about getting signs from point A to point B this weekend, but managed to make a big find for my collection.
Since my work chores were done mid-morning, my wife and I meandered back from the West river region of the state, and stopped in a couple of antique shops on the way back. We hit one ship where as you walked in, stuff was piled high with no real organization, and my wife immediately voiced “here we go,” knowing that this was my kind of shop. While I was pawing through a box of comic books, my wife pointed out a frame of ribbons hanging on the wall.. and it was clear I’d hit the jackpot.
Not only were there three Mitchell for capital silk ribbons, there were three Ribbons which appear to be for Coe Crawford, Attorney General, US Senator, and our 6th Governor. All of the ribbons appear to be from the 1903-1904 era, a time when Crawford would have likely ran for Governor in the primary, only to lose to Samuel Elrod, before his next run for the office where he was successful. Someone had sewn them together into a decoration, where it appears to have stayed since that era, as some of the backing fabric was incredibly brittle, but it protected the ribbons which are all still very supple and in great shape. And in good enough shape to survive being separated, as I picked them apart thread by thread.
I could have lived without them being trimmed up to be equal length, but they would often be trimmed up by the wearer. I suspect someone might have put this together for a rally, and snipped it up for their design.. and then it went into an attic or elsewhere, where it eventually found itself into my hands. Often, silk campaign ribbons found themselves being sewn into a quilt after the campaign was over, and people were looking for fabric scraps, as in this quilt which is held by the Smithsonian..
That’s 432 silk ribbons stitched together and backed with plain white linen. According to the Smithsonian and family tradition, “the Lanes acquired—or were left with—an overstock of ribbons for Mrs. Lane to assemble the quilt.”
My piece was not so well conserved, up against fiberboard in the frame I bought it in. The backing fabric would fall apart in a person’s hands, so I was lucky enough that the wall hanging was easily dismantled, allowing the extraction of some great ribbons, including one of the better Capital fight ribbons I’ve come across:
Always happy to come across another great item showing the richness of our State’s history.
I’m catching stories that the Patriot Ripple Effect group out of Sioux Falls has started kicking people out of their anti-establishment club for various offenses against.. well, I guess we’d say for offenses against the establishment.
Word is they’ve booted at least two local elected officials out, at least one for offenses against the organization such as critical words about the group.
I didn’t realize that the group had grown so large they could afford to start booting out elected officials willing to claim association with them.
The South Dakota Republican Central Committee met this last weekend, and made a point to show their support for Governor Kristi Noem as the campaign heats up for this fall..
The Argus Leader is pointing out today that a lot of people are registering to vote… and a lot of them are happy to be Republicans, as registration numbers are soaring:
Between June and August, Republican voter registration went up nearly 4,000 people, a little more than a 1% increase, according to data from the SD Secretary of State website. Democrat voter registration has remained stagnant for the same period in comparison.
and..
At a more localized level, Ben Kyte, the Minnehaha County auditor, said it’s pretty normal to see voter registration numbers trending upward before a general election, whether it be a governor’s race or presidential race.
“It depends a lot on the organization of the party, and some of it has to do with the interest in the election,” he said. “In this case, we have the governor’s election that’s drawing interest from voters that might be inclined to vote Republican.”
Public Safety Impacts All of Us By: Governor Kristi Noem August 26, 2022
When I was younger my dad always said, “Kristi, we don’t complain about things. We fix them.” As Governor, I focus on fixing problems for our state every day, especially when it comes to public safety. I consistently look for new ways to make our communities safer.
I meet regularly with both Secretary Kellie Wasko in the Department of Corrections and Secretary Craig Price in the Department of Public Safety to plan how to continue improving safety in both our prisons and our entire state. Those meetings have paid off in a big way, with two big announcements for our law enforcement officers. In the last week, I was able to approve significant pay increases for security staff in our prisons and our highway patrol troopers out on the roads.
These raises are an investment in public safety for our communities. They will help us to retain the excellent officers that we already have and recruit new officers eager to give back to their communities by protecting their safety every day.
I won’t sugarcoat it: staffing has been a challenge, particularly in our state prisons. The security officers who work in our corrections facilities and the law enforcement officers in the Highway Patrol deserve the same opportunities as all other employees: to take vacations, spend adequate time with their families, and avoid burnout and unnecessary work-related stress. That hasn’t always been the case for a correctional officer at their post or a trooper out on the road. They often miss birthdays, weddings, or baseball games on extended shifts or mandatory overtime. I’m hopeful that these pay increases will help recruit new staff, which will help improve the work/life balance for current employees, too.
There are more challenges left to take on. Many of our prisons need to be renovated, expanded, or completely replaced. This might not be particularly exciting, but new prisons are safer prisons, which will lead to safer communities. New facilities will help us take on these challenges, and I look forward to working with the legislature to accomplish it.
These new facilities will also help us to focus on rehabilitation, assist and counsel inmates struggling with chemical dependency, and improve educational programs so they can leave prison as more productive members of society. Most inmates will someday be back in their communities, so these services are critical. We need more staff – and to improve morale – to accomplish those goals safely and effectively, and we need facilities that are equipped to achieve these goals.
I want you to watch your kids and grandkids grow up in the freest state in America knowing that they will be safe in their communities. I know we haven’t “fixed it” yet (as I would tell my dad), but with these pay increases, we are one step closer to getting it done.
Proud of My Boys By Rep. Dusty Johnson August 26, 2022
Having a job isn’t always easy, which I suppose is why they call it “work.” However, you can’t deny the importance of good work ethic. There isn’t any reliable recipe for life success that doesn’t involve a mountain of hard work.
One of the reasons I am proud of my two oldest sons is their strong work ethic. Like many teens, they’re involved in a variety of summer activities. In addition to those activities, my boys work summer jobs—unlike most American teens.
This is the fourth summer that 17-year-old Max has worked at the World’s Only Corn Palace giving tours and working in the gift shop. I recently snuck in to one of his tour groups and was impressed with how good he was. He was funny, confident, and knowledgeable. No matter what questions the group asked, Max was never stumped. If only Washington, D.C. had those kinds of reliable answers!
Max outside the World’s Only Corn Palace
My 14-year-old Ben spent his first summer working at a fast-food restaurant selling butter burgers near the interstate. Plenty of friends tell me Ben has waited on them or has brought them their food. When I hear he is working hard and wearing a smile on his face, I couldn’t be prouder. He also remembers to tell me what the frozen custard flavor of the day is, which helps me decide whether I want to pick him up from work or ask his mother to do it.
Ben at his first summer job
When I was growing up, almost 60% of American teens had summer jobs. In recent years, that number is closer to 30%. While there are a tremendous number of competing priorities demanding time from America’s youth, I can’t help but feel that those who never work during the summer are missing out.
My early work experience at the bowling alley snack bar, as a retail clerk on Main Street, and washing cars at a car dealership brought me skills and leadership lessons I still use. Minimum wage was only $4.25, but the value of those experiences was priceless.
There are a number of ways in which our federal government makes it harder for young people to work. For example, 15-year-olds can play video games until well after midnight, but it’s against the law for them to work past 7PM on a school night. I understand why there are limits on how many hours they can work and the type of positions, but current federal rules are too restrictive.
I’m working on legislation that would right-size some of these regulations. It seems to me that some in the bureaucracy view work as punishment, something we need to protect our children from. But they have it wrong. Work is opportunity. Work is a chance to learn important lessons and build a better life.
I’m proud of my sons and their hard work. I know it will put them ahead in their classes at school, their future jobs, and their life. And I look forward to making it easier for other American teens to do the same. Our children have the opportunity to have a better life than us, but that can’t happen if they don’t have the opportunity to value hard work.
ATTORNEY GENERAL RELEASES EXPLANATION FOR PROPOSED AMENDMENTTO THE SOUTH DAKOTA CONSTITUTION ON ABORTIONS
PIERRE, S.D. — South Dakota Attorney General Mark Vargo has released the following Attorney General’s explanation for the November 2024 general election.
The Attorney General’s explanation was drafted after a thorough review of the comments received during the amendment’s 10-day comment period.
State law requires the Attorney General to draft a title and explanation for each initiated measure, initiated constitutional amendment, constitutional amendment proposed by the Legislature, or referred measure that may appear on an election ballot. See SDCL 12-13-9 & 12-13-25.1.
For more information regarding ballot measures, please visit the Secretary of State’s website.
