2025_NikkiGforSD by Pat Powers

The first quarterly report after you announce tends to be important in showing the amount of support you have from friends and family as you launch your campaign.

In Democrat Nikki Gronli’s case as she runs for Congress, her first report isn’t exactly a bell-ringer of an endorsement showing that the Democrat Party’s elite in the state are getting behind her for a major push.  In Gronli’s case, she’s posting $23,171.00 raised, against $2633.75 spent, leaving her $20,537.25 to try to use to raise more money.

A person isn’t going to win a race for Congress with $20k. They might be challenged to win a county commission race in her home county of Minnehaha.

Moving on..

Attorney General Marty Jackley just filed his first FEC report of the congressional race and announced to everyone that he’s swinging a big hammer in this contest.

Oct2025_JackleyCongress by Pat Powers

The Jackley campaign just posted a massive quarter with $525,979.30 raised. The 164 page report includes many, many familiar names including Commissioner of School & Lands Brock Greenfield, State Auditor Rich Sattgast, and Sioux Falls Mayor Paul Tenhaken.  And more current & former legislators than you can shake a stick at; Gary Cammack, Homer Harding, Les Heinemann, Dave Knudson, Jack Kolbeck, Shantel Krebs, Ben Krohmer, Matt Roby, Lee Schoenbeck, Deb Soholt, Jim Stalzer, Steve Westra, Joel Dykstra, Barb Everist, Rocky Blare, and even former Democrat lawmaker and AG hopeful Ron Volesky.

And yes, I’m missing people, but half of the entertainment is that you can go read through the report yourself.

That massive fundraising quarter only had $22,600.23 spent against it, leaving the campaign $503,379.07 to prosecute the campaign.

Stay tuned.  This is only getting started.

Attorney General Jackley Announces Former State Employee Indicted for Falsifying Investigative Reports

PIERRE, S.D. – South Dakota Attorney General Marty Jackley announces that a Spearfish woman has been indicted on four felony counts and one misdemeanor count of falsifying investigative reports while an employee of the South Dakota Department of Social Services’ Child Protective Services.

Nova Collins, 56, was indicted Wednesday, Oct. 15, by a Lawrence County Grand Jury. She is accused of falsifying reports related to a child abuse investigation.

Collins was charged with one felony count of Forgery, which carries a maximum sentence of five years in prison; one felony count of Offer of Forged or Fraudulent Evidence, which carries a maximum sentence of five years in prison; one felony count of Falsification of Evidence, which carries a maximum sentence of two years in prison, one felony count of Offering False or Forged Instrument for Filing, Registering or Recording, which carries a maximum sentence of two years in prison, and one misdemeanor count of Falsification of Public Records by a Public Officer or Employee, which carries a maximum sentence of one year in prison in the county jail.

“Falsifying official documents related to an investigation undermines public trust,” said Attorney General Jackley. “As Attorney General, I will continue to hold individuals accountable for such crimes. Thank you to the Department of Social Services for its cooperation.”

Attorney General Jackley said this is the first criminal case resulting from this year’s passage of Senate Bill 62 which established mandatory reporting requirements related to state employee crimes, improper government conduct, and conflicts of interest. The legislation was introduced by Attorney General Jackley, passed by the Legislature, and signed by the Governor. The case was reported to, investigated by, and is being prosecuted by the Attorney General’s Office’s Public Integrity Program, which is part of the Division of Criminal Investigation.

The crimes were committed in early 2025. The defendant is presumed innocent under the U.S. Constitution.

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Look at the FEC Report Casey Crabtree just filed for his first quarter. Very respectable, and if he can keep it up, it could be a horse race.

Oct 2025 FEC Crabtree by Pat Powers

Crabtree came in raising a respectable $206,271.17 in contributions, which is good, because we’re moving into the fundraising doldrums of the holiday season in 30 days.

Lots of recognizable names on his fundraising list – Current & former Legislators such as Corey Brown, Sen. Sydney Davis, Rep. Roger DeGroot, Alex Jensen, Richard Thomason, Russ Olson, Rep. Drew & Kent Peterson Tim Rave, Sen. Tim Reed, Rep. Kent Roe, Sen Mike Rohl, Sen Steph Sauder, Erin Tobin, Tyler Tordsen, James Wangsness, And I know I’m missing a lot of people. Matt Paulson, Ted Hustead & Delon Mork were in for $3500 each.  Over 90 pages of donors.

Against this, he had $24,792.92 in expenditures, leaving him $181,128.25 cash on hand.

For a first-time statewide candidate, this was respectable, and it definitely looks to be game on in the Congressional race.

Looks like when the South Dakota Republican Party is ran by a former 32-year Democrat, all they know how to do is to fail, as Chairman Jim Eschenbaum continues his trend of raising nothing.

Oct 25 FEC SDGOP by Pat Powers

I can’t say the SDGOP has raised nothing, because they did bring in $25.93 of unsolicited donations.  To this they added a transfer of $4835.30 they raided from their state account.  There was an expense of $15, which provides them the unusual benchmark of spending less than they took in. The bottom line is that they’re left with $38,267.05 in their federal account.

The report also notes that between itemized and unitemized contributions over the course of the first nine months of the year, they are reporting a grand total of $1388.44 in individual donations.

Under $1500 in individual donations? Has anyone called for chairman (and former 32-year Democrat) Jim Eschenbaum to resign yet?  Because given the dismal state of failure he’s driven the Republican party to, he really should consider it at this point.

Thune: Schumer Shutdown Day 15

“We need five more Democrats to say enough is enough. To put the American people ahead of the far left.”

WASHINGTON — U.S. Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-S.D.) today delivered the following remarks on the Senate floor:

Click here to watch the video.

NEW NFIB SURVEY: Small Business Optimism Declines in September  
Index Falls Two Points; Remains Above 52-year Average

PIERRE, SD (Oct. 15, 2025) – The NFIB Small Business Optimism Index declined 2.0 points in September to 98.8. This was the first decline in three months, though it remains above the survey’s 52-year average of 98. The Uncertainty Index rose 7 points from August to 100, the fourth-highest reading in over 51 years.

“Optimism among small business owners decreased in September,” said NFIB Chief Economist Bill Dunkelberg. “While most owners evaluate their own business as currently healthy, they are having to manage rising inflationary pressures, slower sales expectations, and ongoing labor market challenges. Although uncertainty is high, small business owners remain resilient as they seek to better understand how policy changes will impact their operations.”

“A significant 64% of small business owners reported that supply chain disruptions are affecting their business to some degree, putting pressure on inventory and costs here in South Dakota,” said NFIB South Dakota State Director Jason Glodt. “If we want to increase opportunities and welcome more businesses to our state, lawmakers must find sensible solutions that give our small businesses relief.”

Key findings include:

• Supply chain and inflation issues stood out as a key problem in the report. The net percent of owners raising average selling prices rose 3 points from August to a net 24% (seasonally adjusted). A net 31% (seasonally adjusted) plan to increase prices over the next three months, up 5 points from August.
• Fourteen percent of owners reported that inflation was their single most important problem in operating their business (higher input costs), up 3 points from August.
• In September, 64% of small business owners reported that supply chain disruptions were affecting their business to some degree, up 10 points from August.
• A net negative 7% (seasonally adjusted) of owners viewed current inventory stocks as “too low” in September, down 7 points from August. This was the largest monthly decline in the survey’s history.
• One bright spot was actual earnings changes (the net percent of owners reporting higher vs. lower profits), which increased three points in September, up to its highest level since December 2021.
• The net percent of owners expecting better business conditions fell 11 points from August to a net 23% (seasonally adjusted).
• In September, 18% of small business owners cited labor quality as their single most important problem, down 3 points from August and tying with taxes as the top single most important problem.

As reported in NFIB’s monthly jobs report, a seasonally adjusted 32% of all small business owners reported job openings they could not fill in September, unchanged from August. The last time unfiled job openings fell below 32% was in July 2020. Of the 58% of owners hiring or trying to hire in September, 88% reported few or no qualified applicants for the positions they were trying to fill. A seasonally adjusted net 16% of owners plan to create new jobs in the next three months, up 1 point from August and the fourth consecutive monthly increase. Hiring plans are at their highest level since January.

Labor costs reported as the single most important problem for business owners rose by 3 points from August to 11%. Seasonally adjusted, a net 31% reported raising compensation, up 2 points from August. A seasonally adjusted net 19% plan to raise compensation in the next three months, down 1 point from August.

Fifty-six percent of small business owners reported capital outlays in the last six months, unchanged from August. Of those making expenditures, 42% reported spending on new equipment, 22% acquired vehicles, and 14% improved or expanded facilities. Eleven percent spent money on new fixtures and furniture and 5% acquired new buildings or land for expansion. Twenty-one percent (seasonally adjusted) plan capital outlays in the next six months, unchanged from August and a historically weak reading.

A net negative 7% of all owners (seasonally adjusted) reported higher nominal sales in the past three months, up two points from August. More firms reported declining sales than reported gains. The net percent of owners expecting higher real sales volumes fell 4 points from August to a net 8% (seasonally adjusted).

The net percent of owners reporting inventory gains rose 3 points to a net negative 3%, seasonally adjusted. Not seasonally adjusted, 10% reported increases in stocks, and 12% reported reductions. A net 1% (seasonally adjusted) of owners plan inventory investment in the coming months, unchanged from August.

Price increases remain above the monthly average of a net 13%, suggesting continued inflationary pressure. Unadjusted, 33% of owners reported higher average selling prices and 10% reported lower average prices. Seasonally adjusted, a net 31% plan to increase prices in the next three months, up five points from August.

The frequency of reports of positive profit trends improved 3 points from August to a net negative 16% (seasonally adjusted). September’s reading was the highest since December 2021. Among owners reporting lower profits, 33% blamed weaker sales, 17% cited the rise in the cost of materials, 10% cited price change for their product(s) or service(s) and 9% cited labor costs. Among owners reporting higher profits, 58% credited sales volumes, 21% cited usual seasonal change, and 6% cited higher selling prices.

A net 7% of owners reported that their last loan was harder to get than in previous attempts, up 4 points from August and the highest reading of the year. Furthermore, a net 7% reported paying a higher rate on their most recent loan and the average rate paid on short maturity loans was 8.8% in September, up 0.7 points from August. Twenty-six percent of all owners reported borrowing on a regular basis, up 3 points from August.

Owners’ overall assessment of their business’ health was generally unchanged. When asked to rate the overall health of their business, 11% of owners reported excellent (down 3 points), and 57% reported good (up 3 points). Twenty-seven percent reported the health of their business was fair (unchanged) and 4% reported poor (unchanged).

In September, 11% (seasonally adjusted) of owners reported that it is a good time to expand their business, down 3 points from August. This is, comparatively, a relatively weak reading.

Eighteen percent of small business owners reported taxes as their single most important problem, up 1 point from August and ranking as the top problem alongside labor quality. The percent of small business owners reporting government regulations and red tape as their single most important problem fell 3 points to 6%.

The percent of small business owners reporting poor sales as their top business problem remained at 10%. Five percent reported competition from large businesses as their single most important problem, unchanged from August.

In September, 8% reported the cost or availability of insurance as their single most important problem, down 1 point from August. Four percent reported that financing and interest rates was their top business problem in September, unchanged from August.

The NFIB Research Center has collected Small Business Economic Trends data with quarterly surveys since the fourth quarter of 1973 and monthly surveys since 1986. Survey respondents are randomly drawn from NFIB’s membership. The report is released on the second Tuesday of each month. This survey was conducted in September 2025.

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For over 80 years, NFIB has been advocating on behalf of America’s small and independent business owners, both in Washington, D.C., and in all 50 state capitals. NFIB is nonprofit, nonpartisan, and member-driven. Since our founding in 1943, NFIB has been exclusively dedicated to small and independent businesses, and remains so today. For more information, please visit nfib.com.

Congressman Dusty Johnson‘s campaign account continues to accrue funds for his work in Washington, while he’s out beating the bushes in South Dakota to raise money for his gubernatorial campaign:

Friends of Dusty Johnson Oct 2025 FEC by Pat Powers

The outgoing congressman is reporting in his latest FEC report that he raised $141,138.78 against $928,240.41 in expenditures & transfers (including $800,000 transferred to Dusty for Governor), leaving him with $5,201,452.65 cash on hand.

Somehow, I think that will be enough to get him through to his next report.

Well, that’s kind of underwhelming.

In his first FEC Report, Democrat Congressional candidate Billy Mawhiney raised less than a lot of State Legislative races do nowadays.

Billy Mawhiney Oct 2025 FEC Report by Pat Powers

In his first go at bat, which should be when he collects up front money from friends and family.. it doesn’t look like he has many, because he raised $17,106. Against this, he spent $8643.45, leaving him $8462.35 in the bank.

Well, at least he didn’t go backwards.

Former legislator Kameron Nelson gave him $1000, and he put $2,000 of his own money in.. otherwise, not a lot else that was noteworthy.  I suspect his primary opponent will come in with heftier sums, but we’ll have to wait and see for that report.

While State Rep. Jon Hansen was looking in the couch cushions to pay for a text message, Congressman Dusty Johnson was in mailboxes today with a jumbo postcard, talking about his conservative leadership, and the work he’s doing with President Trump: