SD Highest Ranking Elected Democrat Mike Huether abandons ship, and registers independent.

Pat Powers

Well, that came out of the blue.  Tonight’s Argus Headline:

South Dakota Obama elector Mike Huether has taken a good hard look at his party…… and said “Bleaugh.”  Huether held a presser today to tell everyone he’s registering as an independent.

According to the twitter feed of Argus Reporter Patrick Anderson, Huether’s statement is that he’s taking inspiration from Donald Trump, and that while he claims is isn’t about party he notes that “Dems at national level aren’t responding to “hunger” for change.”

And laughably, “Mayor hasn’t told SD dems about his decision.”

The whole comparing himself to Donald Trump…  or moreso comparing Trump to him was probably the most notable barfbag statement.

Good Lord, Huether’s ego shows no boundaries.  All that’s left is for him to announce what office he’s running for in 2018.

52 thoughts on “SD Highest Ranking Elected Democrat Mike Huether abandons ship, and registers independent.”

  1. Maybe that’s what the Dems meant when they counted independents as part of their numbers? lol

    2. He spent plenty of time ripping Pelosi. He’s not going to make the same mistake that Herseth did.

      I think he might be eyeballing congress.

      1. What would he do if he got to Congress? Caucus with the Rs? Because it would be pretty ridiculous to cite Pelosi as the reason for switching your registration, run for Congress, and then join Pelosi’s caucus. (I’m not suggesting he would win but just questioning what he would do in that hypothetical).

  2. This is a smart move by Huether. He rids himself of the baggage and failure of the SDDP and national party yet knows the SDGOP has a very deep bench and is a well oiled machine. Whomever he runs against will have plenty of material to use against Huether from his time as Mayor. Would West River vote for him in a statewide race? I highly doubt it! I sure would not vote for him.

    1. I wouldn’t dismiss him. Is he eyeing Congress or Governor?

      He will be the best non Republican candidate since Lars Herseth in 1986 if he runs for Governor. He will also be a good candidate for US House. Dang the GOP just got a stiff challenge. It’s about time.

  3. Rats do leave a sinking ship. I would guarantee that this would never have happened if the Demoncrats hadn’t tanked this election cycle. I guess this is what you call political expediency from Mayor Mike.

      1. Democrats running the SDDP don’t like the guy anyway – they don’t like SHS either. They are probably really glad that he left. It’s their small mindedness. Huether has done a good job in SF. He will be a serious force.

        The SDDP has become Rick Weiland and Cory Heidelberger.

        1. Ricky and Hamburglar-two mulit-time losers (both in politics and life).

          Maybe with taxpayer dollars to fund his elections Ricky can at least make it respectable.

        2. “The SDDP has become Rick Weiland and Cory Heidelberger.” Don’t forget Professor Lansing, Larry Kurtz and others.

    1. No, Huether is screwed! The R’s don’t like him already, and now the D’s will hate him… Stupid move!!

  6. Trying to game out his strategy here. The KELO story said he said wouldn’t make any decision on his next role until he finishes his term. That would be in April 2018. Does being an Indy allow him to wait longer to jump into a race for either House or Governor? In the few minutes I caught on the livestream he made several references to “the people of Sioux Falls and the people of South Dakota”. He does that a lot and it’s a clear sign that he is looking beyond SF for his next gig. And so I assume a lot of this has to do with the realization that being a Dem (particularly from SF) came with a lot of disadvantages in this red state, and with none of the typical advantages (party structure, organized volunteers, etc).

      1. Not sure what you’re asking or confused about? I said being a Dem in SD came with NONE of the typical advantages being part of a party would and then I listed several typical advantages like party structure and organized volunteers. Point being that the lack of advantages and the plethora of disadvantages incentivized Huether’s move.

  7. I see no reason why Huether wouldn’t be a formidable opponent. I know he wanted to be Governor in 2010 but passed for Heidepriem (that was the best thing that could have happened to him as he became a popular mayor of the biggest city in SD). Most of us speculate that he will run for governor. I however agree with those that say he might be looking at congress. Most of his remarks were directed at the federal level.

    Huether seems very politically savvy and like someone who can realize what his best option is to get elected in SD.

    2. Huether is a self-loving egotistical idiot. I would not be shocked if he wrote the above himself. He’s a buffoon. And Mikey won’t play very well outside of Sioux Falls city limits.

    3. No reason? Let’s count just a few of the many:

      1- He’s no fiscal conservative, no matter how many times he says it
      2- He’s from Sioux Falls, that won’t play well in the rest of the state (those voters will roll their eyes when he says “when SF does well, SD does well” as he tends to do)
      3- He’s a hot-head who will lose his cool when challenged in a debate
      4-The majority of his financial backers during his races for Mayor would abandon him in a statewide race
      5- Every one can tell he’s an egomaniac and rural voters will hate that

  9. Politics is all about match ups.

    Governor
    Huether vs Noem for Governor I give Noem a slight edge.

    Huether vs Jackley for Governor I give Jackley a sizable lead.

    Congress
    Huether vs Johnson I give Huether a strong chance being from Sioux Falls.

    Huether vs Krebs I give Krebs a big advantage because she neutralizes Sioux Falls in a general election.

    1. Anonymous at 7:11

      FWIW, Dusty won Minnehaha with 72% of the vote in 2010. Shantel won with 59% of the vote in 2014. I’m not sure Shantel is any stronger in SF than Dusty is.

    2. Because Krebs has actually done her job for which she was elected, and has done it well. Unlike Mr Johnson who abdicated for greener pastures.

      2. I don’t believe that Dusty leaving the puc before serving a day of his second term will hurt him. People who hit him on that are misguided.

        What will hurt Dusty is that he’s a political animal. He has has worked for state government for his entire adult life.

        How does that fair against Huether the business man?

        Do you think Rhoden voters relate to government jobs? How about Noem voters?

        I don’t think Krebs will run but I do think she would win. I do think others will beat Dusty also. Just because he’s fast out of the gate doesn’t mean his record and life experience won’t be examined.

    3. You’re assuming head-to-head races. There will likely be a Dem in each of those races. Even if it would be strategically the best way to defeat the GOP candidate, it is doubtful that the Dems would let Huether be the only option for their voters.

  10. Do the Dems sit out the race that Huether chooses? An embarrassing third place finish might be more likely than victory.

    1. This only helps him in a statewide race if the Dems sit it out otherwise. If there is a Democrat, Huether, and a GOP candidate, it would be hard to imagine Huether winning.

  11. Maybe he’s not angling for an elected position so much as an appointed one…

    The thing that really got me, though, is the statement that he’s a “fiscal conservative” and a “social libertarian”. I’ve no doubt he believes this of himself, but that just makes it funnier.

    1. Maybe after he’s done being Mayor, one of the Congressional Delegation members will suggest him to Trump for some Administration job. He’d probably love it and it would be a shrewd political move to remove him from the equation (at least in the short-term)

  12. Most interesting angle is this: who is now the Highest ranking Democrat in South Dakota? Mayor of Polo?

  13. I thought the same thing. Legislative Minority Leaders? What’s the party affiliation of the mayors of Aberdeen and Watertown?

    1. I’d bet the mayor of Aberdeen privately identifies & votes Republican though his office is nonpartisan. He worked at Aberdeen’s KSDN radio in reporting the news for years if I remember correctly during the time when Radio had some great on and off air professionals with more local programming. When that industry changed he became a successful investment broker prior to running for mayor. His wife was a long time assistant principle and principle in the Aberdeen Catholic School System and seemed like a staunch conservative Catholic.

  14. Mayor of Aberdeen is a Dem, and isn’t his first name Mike too?

    These scenarios of who owns Sioux Falls vote are curious. It’s going to go to the hardest worker that gets to the events and meets the most people.While in much of the rest of the state you have to do it by media, you can still meet thousands in Sioux Falls by working events. 2018 will be a test of shoe leather

  15. This a good move. Why stay a Dem when he’d have the extremist leftists that run the party like Hildebrand hating on him?

    Huether will out-work just about anybody he runs against. He’s . . . different. Not everyone’s cup of tea, including me. But, he’s a driven, driven guy and knocked on every door in SF the first race and again when he got re-elected.

    There’s a lot of tired views of what plays or doesn’t play in SD in this thread. Didn’t we all learn anything from Rounds, Noem and Trump about dark-horse candidates?

    We ignore, dismiss or belittle him as a candidate at our own peril.

    1. mhs,

      I do agree that we should not underestimate Huether. He is a salesman with pure ambition that has a laser beam focus and has the work ethic so he will be a good competitor against whomever he runs against.

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