GOP Rep. Dusty Johnson entered the race Monday for South Dakota governor, as Gov. Larry Rhoden (R) has yet to announce whether he will run for reelection.
“South Dakota is a special place where hard work, conservative common sense and firm handshakes are a way of life,” Johnson says in an ad posted on YouTube.
“That’s why it’s been such an honor to work for you in Congress. We rolled up our sleeves and got things moving in the right direction, cutting trillions in wasteful spending, standing with President Trump to secure our border and finally getting tough on China.
“Those were important fights to build a better country for our kids, but their future doesn’t begin in some far-away place,” he continues. “It begins here at home in South Dakota.”
Rhoden was lieutenant governor of the state when Kristi Noem was governor, then filled her seat after she left to become the Homeland Security secretary in the Trump administration.
Johnson has been in Congress since 2019 and is chairman of the Republican Main Street Caucus.
South Dakota House Speaker Jon Hansen and businessman Toby Doeden have also announced their campaigns for the GOP gubernatorial primary election, The Hill news outlet reported.
Robert Arnold, a 19-year-old student at Dakota State University, is running as the Democratic candidate for the state governorship.
Rhoden told KOTA in April, “I’m not making a decision based [on] who I’m running against, I’m making a decision based [on] what I’m running for.”
