South Dakota

New political scorecard looks at South Dakota lawmakers on voting issues

Published

9 months ago

April 29, 2025

New political scorecard looks at South Dakota lawmakers on voting issues

Following legislative session, a lot of political activists and organizations look at how the lawmakers align with their respective beliefs.

One new “scorecard” is aiming to do just that on voting issues.

The scorecard is created by the Voter Defense Association South Dakota. Group leaders say their goal is to protect voter rights, which they believe are under attack.

The VDA looked at bills pertaining to the Initiated Process and scored legislators on how they voted on each bill aligning with the organization’s beliefs.

Legislators were scored by either gaining or losing “points” based on a yes or no vote on either their respective chamber’s floor or in committee.

Matt Schweich is the President of VDA. He said though Democrats have traditionally voted more in favor of the organization’s beliefs, three Senate Republicans scored the highest.

Those three Republicans were Senators Kyle Schoenfish, David Wheeler and Michael Rohl. On the House side, the top three scores were given to Democrat Representatives Nicole Uhre-Balk, Kadyn Wittman and Erin Healy.

“We as an organization do not think that the Initiated Process should be a partisan issue. It’s a question of process and it’s a question of the Constitutional rights of the people of South Dakota,” Schweich said. “It shouldn’t be a red or blue issue at all. And so, it’s very encouraging that the three top Senators are all Republicans, and that’s something we want to build on.”

Schweich said he expected the Senate to align closer to the views of VDA than the House based on his experiences in Pierre, but once he looked at all the data the gap between was larger than anticipated.

“I was little surprised it was different to such a degree. When you look at the Senate there’s quite a few As and Bs and B+s relative to the size of the overall size of the chamber with 35 members,” Schweich said. “The House, it’s a lot of Ds and a lot of Fs. We expected a difference, we expected the Senate to better. I don’t think we expected the Senate to be this much better.”

The scorecard can be found on the VDA’s website.

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South Dakota

SD Highway Patrol releases new details on hit and run, asks for public’s help

Published

8 hours ago

January 10, 2026

Press Room

SD Highway Patrol releases new details on hit and run, asks for public’s help

SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (Dakota News Now) – The South Dakota Highway Patrol is continuing to look for the suspect in a deadly hit-and-run near Humboldt, SD.

In a Facebook post, the SD Highway Patrol has released new details regarding the semi suspected of committing the hit and run.

According to police, the semi is a red Freightliner Cascadia semi, missing its passenger-side headlight.

The semi was traveling eastbound from the Humboldt area on I-90 in the early morning hours of Jan. 3, 2026.

Police are seeking information, video, or pictures from 2:13 a.m. – 3:00 a.m. along I-90 and I-29 from the public.

If you have any tips or footage, contact the South Dakota Highway Patrol District 2 Office at (605) 367-5700.

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South Dakota

Dept. of Agriculture and Natural Resources announces $48 million for statewide projects

Published

21 hours ago

January 9, 2026

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Dept. of Agriculture and Natural Resources announces million for statewide projects

SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (Dakota News Now) – The South Dakota Department of Agriculture and Natural Resources (DANR) has the approval of over $48 million in loans and grants for statewide projects.

Together with the Board of Water and Natural Resources, a total of $36,958,000 in state loans, including $425,000 in principal forgiveness, was authorized for drinking water and wastewater improvements.

More funding was distributed to the following programs:

BDM Rural Water:

Received an additional $233,450 in American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funds to construct a new water treatment plant, install a new water reservoir, install a pipe to expand the water system, and replace water meters

Clay Rural Water:

Received $334,250 in ARPA grant funds to construct two ground storage reservoirs near the Greenfield reservoir and the Wakonda Water Treatment plant

Mid-Dakota Rural Water System:

Received $917,357.85 in ARPA grant to update the existing water system

Mitchell:

Received $3,930,000 in Clean Water State Revolving Funds to upgrade the clay sanitary and storm sewer

Rapid City:

Received a $14,512,000 Drinking Water State Revolving loan to make improvements to an existing well and also construct two new wells

Shared Resources:

Received $1,500,000 in ARPA grant funds for a treatment plant, well field, distribution pipeline, and two storage tanks

Sioux Falls:

Received $7,648,000 to complete a third connection to the Lewis and Clark Regional Water System
Received $17,746,000 to construct a new Southeast Basin sanitary force main

South Lincoln Rural Water System:

Received $328,250 in ARPA funds to install an elevated water tank, new pump station, and new water treatment plant

South Dakota Department of Agriculture and Natural Resources:

Received $1 million in ARPA funds for its statewide Riparian Buffer Initiative

Toronto:

Received $770,000 Drinking Water Revolving Loan to accommodate the Department of Transportation installing new storm sewers and highway surfacing

These programs are funded through a combination of federal appropriations, loan repayments, and bonds.

The board approved the funding during a January 8 meeting in Pierre.

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South Dakota

SD Lottery Lucky For Life winning numbers for Jan. 8, 2026

Published

1 day ago

January 9, 2026

Press Room

The South Dakota Lottery offers multiple draw games for those aiming to win big. Here’s a look at Jan. 8, 2026, results for each game:

Winning Lucky For Life numbers from Jan. 8 drawing

05-12-13-39-48, Lucky Ball: 13

Check Lucky For Life payouts and previous drawings here.

Feeling lucky? Explore the latest lottery news & results

Are you a winner? Here’s how to claim your prize

Prizes of $100 or less: Can be claimed at any South Dakota Lottery retailer.
Prizes of $101 or more: Must be claimed from the Lottery. By mail, send a claim form and a signed winning ticket to the Lottery at 711 E. Wells Avenue, Pierre, SD 57501.
Any jackpot-winning ticket for Dakota Cash or Lotto America, top prize-winning ticket for Lucky for Life, or for the second prizes for Powerball and Mega Millions must be presented in person at a Lottery office. A jackpot-winning Powerball or Mega Millions ticket must be presented in person at the Lottery office in Pierre.

When are the South Dakota Lottery drawings held?

Powerball: 9:59 p.m. CT on Monday, Wednesday, and Saturday.
Mega Millions: 10 p.m. CT on Tuesday and Friday.
Lucky for Life: 9:38 p.m. CT daily.
Lotto America: 9:15 p.m. CT on Monday, Wednesday and Saturday.
Dakota Cash: 9 p.m. CT on Wednesday and Saturday.

This results page was generated automatically using information from TinBu and a template written and reviewed by a South Dakota editor. You can send feedback using this form.

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