I’m not sure what exactly to say about this. Except, quite possibly, David Zokaites has defeated Lora Hubbel in the contest for the most bizarre campaign advertising ever.

Noem Opens West River Campaign Headquarters

Rapid City, S.D. – Kristi Noem opened her West River Campaign Headquarters Wednesday in Rapid City. The office will serve as a volunteer outreach center, where South Dakotans can find information about Noem’s vision for South Dakota as well as collect signs, bumper stickers and other Team Noem materials. The office is located at 1739 W Main Street in Rapid City.

“West River has always fought for me, and whether it was securing a strong livestock disaster program in the last Farm Bill, fighting to save the Hot Springs VA, or increasing support for the Ellsworth Air Force Base, I made a commitment to fight for them too,” said Noem. “I was blown away by those who came out to celebrate the grand opening of our new West River Campaign Headquarters and incredibly grateful for their support and their willingness to recruit others to Team Noem too.”

Not a lot of takeaways from the Hughes County Lincoln Day Dinner. Nothing earthshaking. No new announcements.

Although, one of the few things pointed out to me that got people’s attention was the campaign handout from Lora Hubbel with bare-chested women.  When I first heard that, it was almost a spit-take moment, and I had to pause and ask “What did you say?”

My vast network of spies (or at least one of the dinner attendees) managed to get a copy sent over to me today, and we found out what she was passing around to entice people to vote for her:

As far as the nudity goes, it’s fairly PG-13 rated, given that the people in the State Capitol live and work underneath these classically painted State Capitol murals every day.  But weirdly, Lora used this piece to tie into her speech to the dinner crowd, and in addition to her ‘air-Uber’ proposal, it came off as one of the bizarro moments in her prepared remarks.

If you go to about 40 minutes into this video, you can listen to where Lora spoke.

When she brought up this campaign handout, she noted “We are a Christian nation, and that is how we solve our problems.” Then she cited the artwork in the Capitol as containing Christian bibles, the doorknobs as noting “under God the people rule,” and that as Governor she will “take that sheetrock off of that painting and display that in the Governor’s office….”  And kind of ended there.

She didn’t really have a point to make, as much as the disconnected phrases were uttered forth from her mouth.

Ooookay. Another day on the campaign trail.

Looks like someone didn’t lose by enough last time. After taking a class on how to win an election from Ann Tornberg a week ago…

..the word tonight is that Cory Heidelberger is now full of confidence (or full of something) and getting up on that horse again as he prepares to take another electoral defeat at the hands of Al Novstrup in the District 3 State Senate Race.

This should be entertaining.

From the Brookings Register comes the announcement of another great Republican candidate for the State Legislature :

 V.J. Smith of Brookings has announced his candidacy for the South Dakota State Senate seat from District 7.

and..

“I had two majors: history and political science. Ever since I was young, I’ve had an interest in politics. I felt one day, when the timing was right, I would venture into the arena,” Smith said.

He returned to SDSU in 1990 to serve as assistant to the athletic director. In 1996, he was named the executive director of the SDSU Alumni Association and held that position for 10 years. For the past 12 years, he has been a full-time professional speaker and travels throughout the United States. He is also a published author.

He feels the time is right for him to step into the arena.

“Frankly, the tone of politics right now isn’t what it should be,” Smith said. “Studies have shown we are quite divided, and the reason why we’re divided is because we’re not doing a very good job of listening to each other.”

Read it all here.

This is interesting..  If you recall some time ago I noted lorahubbel.com was for sale on the Internet for the low, low price of $795.00, but it was too rich for my blood (more than $10-20).

In the last week or so, it looks like Lora (or one of her supporters) actually made that deep dive into their pocketbooks:

Yep. Looks like Lora has it back. For nearly 8 times the amount of money that she reported raising in all of 2017.  Despite the fact she already has a website set up.

I think if I had only been able to raise $100 in the previous year, spending that much money on a web domain I didn’t need might not be my first priority.

But that’s just me.

Noem Statement on Passing of Rev. Billy Graham

SIOUX FALLS, SD — Kristi Noem today released the following statement following the passing of Rev. Billy Graham:

“Rev. Billy Graham inspired world leaders, American heroes, and families across this nation for decades. He helped shape our nation around the idea that in God we trust. Today, I’m confident the Lord called him home with the message: ‘Well done, good and faithful servant.'”

Jackley Announces “Hometown South Dakota” Initiative

PIERRE, SD: While meeting with Chamber of Commerce groups at the capital Wednesday, Attorney General and Republican candidate for governor Marty Jackley unveiled a five-point Hometown South Dakota Initiative aimed at strengthening the state’s economy.

“Our South Dakota communities are like a circulatory system in which each town has an important role to play in giving the entire state life,” Jackley said. “After gathering input from civic and business leaders at the local level, we’re proud to release a plan to support opportunities in hometowns across South Dakota.”

The collaborative effort that produced the Hometown South Dakota Initiative is underscored by events like last week’s economic forum in Harrisburg, which Jackley said will be replicated in communities across the state in the coming months.

“It’s important that mayors have a seat at the table when discussing issues like infrastructure, workforce development and housing, and I welcome the idea of our next governor being a willing partner in that conversation,” said Sturgis Mayor Mark Carstensen.

The initiative proposes action in five areas that emphasize cooperation with local leadership:

1. Opportunity South Dakota: New and better jobs will be Jackley’s highest priority, and giving our youth the opportunity to stay here is the first step. By giving our young people the opportunities they need to remain in the state and aggressively recruiting employees in high-demand areas from outside the state, we can retain South Dakota’s best and close the worker shortage.
2. Fairness for Main Street: Our South Dakota businesses can compete with the best in the world, but they deserve a level playing field. Jackley is leading the fight for Main Street all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court with the South Dakota v. Wayfair case. A Supreme Court victory will bring millions in lost revenue back to the state.
3. Connecting South Dakota: We can unlock the incredible economic potential of all our communities by connecting our towns with the high-speed internet that the 21^st century economy requires. By partnering with institutions like SDSM&T, SDSU, and DSU that are developing cutting edge technologies in this space, we will modernize four areas of critical technological infrastructure: broadband access, education, telemedicine, and precision agriculture.
4. Governor’s Economic Roundtables: Strengthening our economy and creating better jobs requires a team effort from the state, local governments, educational institutions, and the private sector. In order to build a stronger partnership with communities, Jackley will commit to three annual roundtables: one each for mayors, county leaders, and businesses.
5. Revitalizing Housing and Infrastructure: During Jackley’s listening tours across the state, he has consistently heard about the need for a renewed focus on infrastructure and affordable housing. Both are vital components of growing our workforce, and Jackley will be a steadfast partner to local governments that are working with limited resources to build the roads, bridges, and housing units our citizens need to usher in a new era of economic growth.

“As governor, it will be my job to remember why I have two ears and one mouth,” Jackley said. “Our Hometown Initiative is not about telling communities what they need to do to improve. Rather, it is about listening to communities and understanding what I can do as governor to assist them with the necessary resources to grow and thrive.”

The policy initiative can be read in its entirety here: https://www.martyjackley.com/hometown-south-dakota-initiative/

Jackley will be available for press interviews during the day.

-30-

From Facebook:

By the looks of it, apparently former US Senate Candidate Dr. Annette Bosworth has a new book out. And depending how you look at it, it either has an unfortunate…  or pretty versatile title:

I’m sure she could use “ANY WAY YOU CAN” as the title of a other books she could author.

Such as a book on fundraising for your legal defense…

or perhaps how to get on the ballot….
I’m just going to stop right there.