In July a group of twenty-four SD GOP Chairmen initiated a Special Meeting of the SD GOP. The governing bylaw is Section I, Paragraph 7B: “Special meetings for specific purposes may be called by the state chairman or upon the written request of at least one member of each county delegation of at least 10 different counties.”
Organizers, led by Stuart J. Cvrk, stated that the meeting was requested largely because the SD GOP has been uncharacteristically silent about ballot propositions this year. Prior to the special meeting which occurred on Saturday, 24 August 2024 in Oacoma, SD, the SD GOP had not taken an official position other than lamenting in routine conversation of the obvious large changes that would result in the passage of any of the measures.
The agenda for the special meeting included:
Ballot proposition discussions
Amendment H: An amendment to the South Dakota Constitution Establishing Top-Two Primary Elections.
Amendment G: An initiated Amendment Establishing a Right to Abortion in the State Constitution.
RL21: A Referred Act to Provide New Statutory Requirements for Regulating Linear Transmission Facilities, to Allow Counties to Impose a Surcharge on Certain Pipeline Companies, and to Establish a Landowner Bill of Rights.
Measure 29: An Initiated Measure Legalizing the Recreational Use, Possession, and Distribution of Marijuana.
Amendment F: An amendment to the Constitution of the State of South Dakota, authorizing the state to impose work requirements on certain individuals who are eligible for expanded Medicaid.
Measure 28: An Initiated Measure Prohibiting Taxes on Anything Sold for Human Consumption.
Amendment E: An amendment to the Constitution of the State of South Dakota, updating references to certain officeholders and persons.
Strategy/Coordination of Key Races
Public Utilities Commissioner
Other
Get-Out-The Vote (GOTV) Training
Campaign Sidekick
Young Voter Registration Initiative
Other (time permitting)
Bylaws status
Approved resolutions disposition
The State Party declined to endorse and support the properly called meeting, forcing the county chairmen who initiated the meeting, to properly notice it themselves on 6 August to all SD GOP State Central Committee members.
In the weeks leading up to the special meeting, there were rumors propagated via the self-proclaimed “#1 South Dakota political website, South Dakota War College” that a coup against party leadership was the reason for the meeting. One such article was penned by blog owner, Pat Powers on 10 August where he questioned via the headline “Republican coalition of confederates now “By-Law Compliant Counties,” holding meeting rumored to try to overthrow GOP leadership?” Powers further revved up the rumor mill when he posted a guest column by Lawrence County resident, Sam Kephart, who claimed that “rogue elements” were going to topple the State GOP in his piece titled “Guest Column: State GOP To Be Toppled By Rogue Elements.”
Clearly those takes on the special meeting proved to be entirely incorrect and unhelpful.
A full summary of the meeting can be located on the StuinSD Substack and The Rushmore Republican encourages all readers to review his comprehensive write-up of the meeting. Feedback was hugely positive by attendees.
A portion of his summary communicates that there were “over 100 attendees, including State Central Committee members proxies totaling 94 authorized votes representing 29 of the state’s 66 counties. Four state central committee members per organized county comprise a county’s delegation: chairman, vice chairman, state committeeman, and state committeewoman. A quorum consists of 45 members of the 200-odd state committee members of the 50 counties that have official Republican Party organizations in the state (there are 66 counties in South Dakota). The attendees included three State GOP regional directors (one of whom served as the meeting chairman), our national committeewoman, six state legislators (three of whom led discussions on ballot propositions), the top of the SD Republican ticket in November this year (a public utilities commissioner), the SD attorney general, and 25 guests and other key speakers.”
Chairman John Wiik, Vice Chair Mary Fitzgerald and the remaining members of the SG GOP Executive Board refused to attend the meeting. Further, Executive Director, Reggie Rhoden, son of Lieutenant Governor Larry Rhoden, was also a no-show at the by-law compliant meeting.
The ripple effect of the Executive Board’s decision not to support the special meeting was felt in at least one other county in the state who ended up with no representation at the meeting. Lawrence County, where Rep Mary Fitzgerald is their county GOP Chair, told Republicans at a meeting in Spearfish also scheduled on 24 Aug, that her executive board for Lawrence County voted not to attend. She further refused to send proxy members to the meeting who volunteered to represent Lawrence County.
Attendees of the meeting voted on ballot propositions and the outcome can be summed up as “F Vote Yes, No on the Rest.”
