South Dakota
Governor to make call on immigration sanctuary cities ban after House passage • South Dakota Searchlight
A bill barring cities, counties or schools from acting as safe havens for undocumented immigrants in South Dakota is headed to the governor’s desk after a 62-6 vote in the state House of Representatives.
Lawmakers are considering several bills this legislative session dealing with immigration. Senate Bill 7, the first of those bills to pass both chambers, would prohibit the state and its political subdivisions from adopting any policy to prevent local law enforcement from cooperating with federal immigration authorities or disciplining officers who do.
There are no South Dakota cities or counties where police or sheriff’s deputies have refused to work with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), according to the bill’s sponsor, Rep. Mary Fitzgerald, R-Spearfish.
“Potentially, if we didn’t pass this legislation, maybe we would,” Fitzgerald said in response to a question from Rep. Kadyn Wittman, D-Sioux Falls. “This is really a proactive bill, a proactive step toward making our state safe.”
Noem calls deportation protection for Venezuelans ‘contrary to the national interest’
The bill is meant in part as a statement of support on the state level for the immigration law enforcement actions undertaken by the Trump administration, Fitzgerald said.
“President Trump vowed to make America safe again, and as we’ve seen since January 20, he is living up to that promise with thousands of arrests and ICE detainers,” she said. “The South Dakota Legislature is not in charge of border security, but we are affected by the criminals who have entered the United States illegally.”
Wittman voted against the bill. There’s no need to address an issue if it doesn’t exist, she argued, but there could be unintended consequences. Migrant victims of domestic violence may be less likely to call for help for fear of detention, she said, and a statement of support for federal raids will serve to sour relationships between migrants and the members of law enforcement who may need their help investigating criminal activity.
The bill’s easy passage through the House – it cleared the House Local Government committee 12-1, with Wittman the lone opponent – follows an even smoother trajectory in the Senate. The upper chamber placed SB 7 on its consent calendar, passing it unanimously and with no debate alongside three other uncontested bills.
Gov. Rhoden’s office did not immediately respond to a question on whether he’ll sign SB 7.
Two other proposals tied to immigration advanced Monday, as well.
The Senate sent legislation to the House that would add language to state law and the state constitution saying it’s illegal for noncitizens to vote in South Dakota elections.
Federal law already says only U.S. citizens may vote in federal elections. But Sen John Carley, R-Piedmont, said there is nothing in state law specifying that a person must be a U.S. citizen to vote in South Dakota elections.
“We have always just assumed this is required,” Carley said.
His bill contains language to that effect and would also make voting by noncitizens a felony punishable by up to two years in prison and a $4,000 fine.
The other bill, from Sen. Taffy Howard, R-Rapid City, would ask voters to put similar language in the state constitution on Election Day in 2026. The constitution can only be amended by voters.
Asked by South Dakota Searchlight if the bills are redundant, Carley said his bill is needed to put a law in place with a penalty now while the Legislature waits to see if the ballot measure wins approval later.
Carley said the two bills are part of a “trifecta of safeguards” against noncitizens voting. The third bill, from Sen. Amber Hulse, R-Hot Springs, would require driver’s licenses and identification cards to indicate whether the licensee is a U.S. citizen. Identification is required to cast a ballot in South Dakota.
The Senate sent that bill to the House last week.
GET THE MORNING HEADLINES.
See Republican Zach Lahn speak after primary win in governor’s race
GOP gubernatorial candidate Zach Lahn speaks to his supporters during an election night watch party on June 2, 2026, in West Des Moines.
The makeup of the Legislature was up in the air as of 1 a.m. after South Dakota’s primary election.
Ten Republican state lawmakers ousted in 2024 are angling to get their seats back in 2026. Results were mixed for the nine who had primaries on Tuesday, with results still coming in for several races and others set for possible recounts.
Shawn Bordeaux of Rosebud won the state’s only Democratic primary, beating Troy “Luke” Lunderman for a chance to return to the state Senate.
Bordeaux will face Chamberlain Republican Rebecca Reimer in November’s general election. Reimer, who was term-limited in the state House of Representatives, beat Lower Brule Sen. Tamara Grove in Tuesday’s primary.
In Watertown’s District 5, Rep. Josephine Garcia fell in a state Senate primary to incumbent Sen. Glen Vilhauer. Garcia beat Byron Callies in the 2024 primary to earn her seat in the House of Representatives, but opted to challenge Vilhauer for his Senate seat instead of seeking reelection to the House.
Callies, Vilhauer and Garcia are all from Watertown.
Vilhauer won with 59% of the vote. His was one of the first state legislative victories of the night reported on the Secretary of State’s website.
Vilhauer won handily, but he said he wasn’t necessarily expecting to as polls opened on Tuesday.
“I knew it was going to be a battle going in,” Vilhauer said. “She worked hard on her side, and I didn’t know what to expect.”
Callies was among the first to call Vilhauer to congratulate him, around 9:30 p.m.
“I’m happy, because Glen’s a solid legislator,” said Callies, who’s angling to win his seat back in the general election.
Garcia did not return a call seeking comment.
In District 21, Sen. Mykala Voita of Bonesteel beat former Sen. Erin Tobin of Winner in a rematch of their 2024 contest, which Voita won by a few dozen votes that year. This time around, Voita bested Tobin by 1,002 votes.
In response to a request for comment, Voita sent a text reading “Glory to God!”
Tobin did not return a call from South Dakota Searchlight about her race after it was called, but said earlier in the evening she would be “at peace” with the results regardless of what they might be.
Another rematch saw Yanktonites Lauren Nelson and Jean Hunhoff battling for District 18’s state Senate seat. Nelson was a newcomer in 2024 when she beat Hunhoff, who’d spent decades in the Capitol between stints in the House and Senate. On Tuesday, Nelson held off Hunhoff, winning by 243 votes.
Other notable races
- District 4 Rep. Dylan Jordan of Clear Lake, first elected in 2024, finished fourth in a five-way race. As of 1 a.m. Wednesday, he trailed Ryan Kohl of Milbank and former Rep. Fred Deutsch of Florence, in first and second place, respectively. A recount is possible in that race, with 59 votes separating the top two vote-getters while Rep. Kent Roe, of Hayti, came in third place, with 72 fewer votes than Deutsch.
- District 4 has two possible recounts. In the other, Bryant’s Stephanie Sauder beat Clear Lake’s Tim Begalka by 105 votes in the unofficial tally from the Secretary of State.
- District 1 Rep. Logan Manhart of Aberdeen, elected in the 2024 primary, fell to Rep. Nick Fosness, a hospital administrator appointed by Gov. Larry Rhoden in 2025, and newcomer Daniel Kjos.
- Another recount was possible as of Wednesday at 1 a.m., in the District 16 race for House of Representatives. Rep. John Shubeck of Beresford trailed Lisa Bogue of Beresford by 245 votes in unofficial results. Jason VanDenTop of Canton was in third place, trailing Shubeck by 68 votes.
Vote totals incomplete
- Sen. John Carley of Piedmont, who won his first term in 2024, trailed William Meirose of Sturgis by 166 votes as of 1 a.m. Wednesday.
- Former Rep. Tyler Tordsen led Rep. Tony Kayser by two votes in the District 14 primary, with results still coming in. The Sioux Falls men are vying for second place and a spot on the November general election ballot alongside Rep. Taylor Rehfeldt of Sioux Falls, who led by more than 600 votes early Wednesday.
- District 28 Sen. Sam Marty of Prairie City was in a close race with former legislator Ryan Maher of Isabel.
- Former Rep. Gary Cammack of Union Center, who lost his seat in 2024, and Gary Deering of Hereford, led Reps. Terri Jorgenson of Piedmont and Kathy Rice of Blackhawk in the District 29 race.
- In District 30, Hot Springs Sen. Amber Hulse led former Sen. Julie Frye-Mueller of Rapid City by more than 1,300 votes.
- Former Sen. David Johnson of Rapid City led Sen. Curt Voight of Rapid City in a rematch of their 2024 race for District 33 Senate in early results.
- Rep. Heather Baxter of Rapid City has signaled her intention to challenge sitting Secretary of State Monae Johnson for the Republican nomination to that constitutional office at the state’s Republican Party convention this summer. In early results, Baxter trailed former Rapid City Rep. Becky Drury and Rep. Mike Derby in the District 34 primary.
- Early results in the District 35 primary put Sen. Greg Blanc, elected in 2024, in a close race with fellow Rapid City resident Nicole Mitzel.
South Dakota Searchlight is part of States Newsroom, the nation’s largest state-focused nonprofit news organization.
South Dakota
Republican businessman Toby Doeden advances to primary runoff in South Dakota governor’s race
Republican businessman Toby Doeden has advanced to a runoff in South Dakota governor’s race, NBC News projects.
Gov. Larry Rhoden, who replaced Kristi Noem last year when President Donald Trump nominated her to lead the Department of Homeland Security, was battling with Rep. Dusty Johnson and former state House Speaker Jon Hansen for a second spot in the July 28 runoff. The primary will go to a runoff because no candidate eclipsed 35% of the vote.
Trump did not issue an endorsement in the race. Doeden branded himself on his campaign website as “a total political outsider who’s tired of the government’s failure to deliver on its promises” and one of Trump’s “fiercest supporters.”
Rhoden, a former lieutenant governor, agriculture secretary and lawmaker, campaigned on property tax cuts and lowering crime in his bid for a four-year term.
Johnson is the state’s lone representative in the House, where he previously was chair of the Republican Main Street Caucus. Hansen, who was elected to the South Dakota House in 2010, held several leadership positions before he became speaker.
The Republican nominee will be the favorite to win the general election in the solidly red state this fall. A Democrat has not served as governor in South Dakota since the 1970s, and Trump carried the state by 29 points in 2024.
News
Agronomist: eastern South Dakota crops hit and miss
An agronomist in eastern South Dakota says corn and soybeans are hit and miss as the growing season begins.
Steven Zemlicka with AgTegra Cooperative tells Brownfield, “We’ve got corn anywhere from V1 all the way up to V4. Biggest stuff’s maybe touching V5. Corn’s coming right along, looks pretty good. A little bit of hail here too, but I don’t think it’s going to be much of an issue. Stands for the most part are pretty good, pretty solid.”
Zemlicka says soybean emergence has been slow due to the wet, cool conditions, and there are a few fields that still need planted.
“People were still working on planting soybeans when we got the recent rain.”
He says recent rain totals ranged from a half inch to as much as four inches in the northeast part of South Dakota; the southern part of the state has been drier.
South Dakota’s corn is rated 61 percent good to excellent, with soybean conditions rated 57 percent good to excellent, according to USDA’s first condition ratings of the season.
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