As pointed out by a couple of candidates recently, some expected candidates did not end up filing, reducing the number of candidates that had been expected. Carol Pitts took a pass, Karon Gubbrud did not turn in petitions in 9, No Scott Craig in D33, and so on.
I’ll be cleaning up my list as time allows, but even without those who didn’t turn in petitions, it was still a wild week for candidates. On the Republican side of the equation, I know the GOP is enthused with the number of candidates we were able to field. Democrats mildly approved, calling the number “slightly above average:”
Least you complain about the Democratic Party’s recruitment efforts, you must remember that this is a slightly above average showing for Democrats. Not since 2008 have the Democrats come close to fielding a full slate of legislative candidates. Of course, not since 2008 have the Democrats come close to loosening the Republican stranglehold on the South Dakota legislature. You can’t win if you don’t have candidates. But then again, you can’t win if you don’t have voters either and Democratic voter registration continues to decline.
The downside for dems is that within their number, you invariably have to question how many of them are placeholders. As I’ve pointed out before, they’re likely to have several. Dem House Candidates Alanna Silvis & Holly Boltjes already have a reputation for serving in that capacity in prior years. I heard this past weekend that the person Dems put up against State Senator Jim White in Huron is also just a placeholder while they try to get someone ‘good.’
Being a Republican, I guess I don’t understand the depth of the malaise that the Democrat party suffers from in the State. Don’t get me wrong, I can cite many causes, but I just don’t understand it.
Inserting a placeholder gives Dems until some time in August to find a replacement. But in those cases, you have to wonder whether theextra time will help them shake someone loose from the bushes that’s better than the person who would have had 5 months to get out there and run.
But, that might be one reason why they’ve been bringing up the rear in South Dakota.
I have been told that Karon Gubbrud did turn in her petitions on time. Weather there was a problem with them or they were hung up in the mail system, we don’t know. It would appear the SOS office is still processing petitions.
I know that in the past, some have gotten hung up in the mail for up to a week.