Politics.

Educational materials on sexual assault in prisons, produced by the South Dakota Department of Corrections and paid for by federal

The U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C., on Thursday, April 18, 2024. (Photo by Jennifer Shutt/States Newsroom) The U.S. Senate is

U.S. Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., left, listens as Sen. Mike Crapo, R-Idaho, speaks to reporters outside of the

U.S. Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., speaks to reporters at the Capitol as lawmakers work on the “One Big

The National Public Radio headquarters in Washington, D.C., on Tuesday, May 27, 2025.  (Photo by Jennifer Shutt/States Newsroom) WASHINGTON —

Members of the Comprehensive Property Tax Task Force meet in Sioux Falls on June 25, 2025. (Makenzie Huber/South Dakota Searchlight)

A makeshift memorial for DFL State Rep. Melissa Hortman and her husband, Mark Hortman, is seen at the Minnesota State

Susan Monarez, President Donald Trump’s nominee to be the director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, testifies during

The Project Prison Reset group meets on April 3, 2025, at the Military Heritage Alliance in Sioux Falls. (John Hult/South

Former Gov. Steve Bullock, D-Montana, (left) and former Gov. Larry Hogan, R-Maryland, (right) said that current governors may be missing

Linsey Sapp, who wears an “Inmate Rights” shirt and whose husband is incarcerated, speaks to lawmakers at an Initial Incarceration,

U.S. Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-South Dakota, speaks to Rotary members on April 17, 2025, at the Elks Lodge

South Dakota Speaker of the House Jon Hansen, R-Dell Rapids, speaks at a meeting of the Project Prison Reset work

Flowers, notes and American flags adorn a makeshift memorial for Minnesota state Rep. Melissa Hortman and her husband, Mark, at

South Dakota Gov. Larry Rhoden speaks to the media during a press conference on March 13, 2025, at the Capitol

Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem speaks during her confirmation hearing before the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee on Capitol

Signs stand at the entryway to a Sept. 26, 2024, public forum hosted by Neighbors Opposed to Prison Expansion, which

A B-2 Stealth Bomber performs a fly over before the NFL game between the Kansas City Chiefs and the Baltimore

A rendering of a state-owned shooting range under construction north of Rapid City. (Courtesy of South Dakota GF&P) A list

Nikki Gronli, former USDA Rural Development state director, speaks at a state Department of Social Services public hearing regarding cuts

The Senate floor at the state Capitol during the 2024 Legislature. (Makenzie Huber/South Dakota Searchlight) South Dakota legislative leaders recently

Bullet holes are seen in the door outside the home of state Sen. John Hoffman on June 15, 2025, in

A crowd listens to a presentation on June 17, 2025, at Mitchell Technical College about the possibility of constructing a

Rodney Scott, President Donald Trump’s nominee to be chief of U.S. Customs and Border Protection, prepares to testify during his

(Getty Images) The number of reported measles cases has grown to four in South Dakota, according to a Wednesday news

From left, U.S. Sens. Amy Klobuchar and Tina Smith, both Minnesota Democrats. (Courtesy photos.) WASHINGTON — U.S. Sens. Amy Klobuchar

A sign displays the names of South Dakota’s three elected public utilities commissioners outside of their Pierre office in January

Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., center, accompanied by Sen. John Barrasso, R-Wyo., left, and Sen. Shelley Moore Capito, R-W.Va.,

U.S. Sen. Alex Padilla, a California Democrat, speaks on the Senate floor on June 17, 2025, about how he was

U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem delivers remarks to staff at the Department of Homeland Security headquarters on Jan. 28,

The U.S. Capitol. (Photo by Jennifer Shutt/States Newsroom) WASHINGTON — U.S. senators emerged from a briefing with federal law enforcement

Reid Rasner, who says he’s pulled together a $47.45 billion bid for TikTok, speaks on May 23, 2025, at Dakota

The U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C., on Thursday, April 18, 2024. (Photo by Jennifer Shutt/States Newsroom) WASHINGTON — Republicans and

Sioux Falls Rotarian Kersten Johnson, left, moderates a panel discussion including Applied Digital’s Nick Phillips on June 16, 2025, at

U.S. Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., right, and Speaker of the House Mike Johnson, R-La., hold a press conference

U.S. Capitol Police officers stand guard outside of the U.S. Capitol on June 16, 2025 in Washington, D.C. (Photo by

Law enforcement stage in a neighborhood on June 15, 2025, in Green Isle, Minnesota, while searching for a suspect in

A sign for the South Dakota Department of Labor and Regulation at its Sioux Falls office in June 2025. (Makenzie

U.S. President Donald Trump and first lady Melania Trump stand together at the end of the U.S Army parade on

Demonstrators hold signs during a No Kings protest on June 14, 2025, in Sioux Falls. (Joshua Haiar/South Dakota Searchlight) With

Speaker emeritus Rep. Melissa Hortman talks to colleagues during a special legislative session June 9, 2025, at the Minnesota State

A voter shows identification to an election judge. (Photo by Jeff Swensen/Getty Images) WASHINGTON — A Massachusetts federal judge on

Nicole Preble holds a sign during a protest against the Trump administration on April 23, 2025, in Rapid City. (Seth

Demonstrators protest outside a downtown jail in Los Angeles following two days of clashes with police during a series of

Union members and supporters rally in Grand Park calling for the release of union leader David Huerta, who was arrested

South Dakota Republican Gov. Larry Rhoden speaks during a press conference Feb. 6, 2025, at the Capitol in Pierre with

U.S. House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., holds up an Elmo toy while the chamber debates a bill that would

The Sioux Falls One Stop houses offices for several state departments, including Health, Social Services and Revenue. It hosted a

Senator Alex Padilla, D-Calif.,  speaks at a Biden-Harris campaign and DNC press conference on July 18, 2024 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.

(Getty Images) The students who earned their certificates of library management this month with the aid of the South Dakota

U.S. Army soldiers work on an assortment of M1 Alpha a3 Abrams tanks, stryker armored vehicles, and M2 Bradley fighting

People hold signs at a protest on May 23, 2025, at the South Dakota State Penitentiary in Sioux Falls. (John

The Hughes County Courthouse in Pierre, pictured in November 2022. (John Hult/South Dakota Searchlight) Another person has been sentenced for

Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., center, accompanied by Sen. John Barrasso, R-Wyo., left, and Sen. Shelley Moore Capito, R-W.Va.,

U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth testifies before the House Appropriations Committee’s Defense Subcommittee at the U.S. Capitol on June 10,

Indiana Rep. Erin Houchin, left, and South Dakota Rep. Dusty Johnson, both Republicans, speak with reporters inside the U.S. Capitol

Participants in a welding program for minimum security inmates are pictured at Southeast Technical College in Sioux Falls on Oct.

Demonstrators protest outside a downtown jail in Los Angeles following two days of clashes with police during a series of

(Getty Images) If Republicans in the U.S. Senate pass the “One Big Beautiful Bill Act” as written, 13,000 South Dakotans

South Dakota Gov. Larry Rhoden speaks with the press at the Capitol in Pierre on Feb. 27, 2025. (Joshua Haiar/South

The “Wellness on Wheels” program launched in spring of 2024. (Courtesy of South Dakota Department of Health) The South Dakota

Jodi Fick stands in the children’s section of Siouxland Libraries’ downtown Sioux Falls location. (Joshua Haiar/South Dakota Searchlight) Her career

Toby Doeden announces his candidacy for the Republican nomination for governor of South Dakota during an event on May 28,

(Johner Images via Getty Images) The South Dakota State Library has secured the second half of its federal funding, which

South Dakota Gov. Larry Rhoden speaks to the media during a press conference on March 13, 2025, at the Capitol

Good Samaritan Society Sioux Falls Center, which was recently removed from a remedial program for nursing homes. (John Hult/South Dakota

 Mike Quinn and Mike Conder of Arrington Watkins consultants in Phoenix, speak to members of the Project Prison Reset work

A male ring-necked pheasant. (Photo by Travel South Dakota) Hunters bagged more pheasants last fall in South Dakota than they

Volunteers distribute food at Food Bank for the Heartland’s mobile pantry at an Omaha, Neb., elementary school in April. (Photo

The U.S. Supreme Court, on Oct. 9, 2024. (Photo by Jane Norman/States Newsroom) WASHINGTON — A federal judge in California

A marijuana plant at the Dakota Herb grow operation near Tea, South Dakota. (John Hult/South Dakota Searchlight) Another former South

Feeding South Dakota’s Rapid City location on May 30, 2025. (Seth Tupper/South Dakota Searchlight) South Dakota’s largest hunger-relief organization says

A sign for the Public Broadcasting Service, or PBS,  is seen on its building headquarters on Feb. 18, 2025 in