South Dakota Senate: where the candidates stand

Affordability / Cost of Living

Frames affordability of housing, healthcare, food, and education as foundational, and supports fair wages, targeted subsidies, and tax credits so full-time workers can live with dignity. He describes restructuring the economy so it delivers for regular people, not just large donors.

Economy and Affordability

Lists economic affordability as a re-election priority and cites cutting bureaucratic red tape, keeping taxes low, and a business-friendly environment as long-standing priorities. He points to South Dakota's economy and quality of life as evidence of that approach.

Argues the tax code is rigged for the ultra-wealthy and says the richest Americans should pay rates comparable to the 1960s. He says taxes can be lowered for small businesses and people who work for a living while still funding programs and debt reduction.

No documented position found in reviewed sources.

Immigration and Border Security

Calls the immigration system outdated and broken and supports 'effects-based' reform that pairs strong border security with increased legal immigration, citing slow population growth and the need to sustain Social Security and economic growth.

Immigration and Border Enforcement

Says border security is essential to national security and that illegal drugs and human trafficking must be stopped, and he has supported funding for a border wall, surveillance technology, and more border personnel.

Healthcare

Calls the healthcare industry an effective monopoly and says medical debt drives over half of personal bankruptcies. He proposes a five-stage 'effects-based' overhaul intended to reduce costs while improving affordability and access.

Social Security and Medicare

Opposes privatizing Social Security and Medicare and calls keeping both programs strong a moral obligation and practical necessity.

Veterans and VA Healthcare

Opposes privatizing VA healthcare and criticizes the share of the VA budget spent on private contractors while VA facilities face staff shortages. He pledges to keep promises to veterans, noting he is a veteran and former military prosecutor.

Social Security and Medicare

Says he is committed to protecting Social Security and Medicare for current and future generations and supports commonsense reforms to keep the programs solvent without cutting benefits.

Healthcare (private insurance and ACA)

No documented position found in reviewed sources.

Tariffs and Trade

No documented position found in reviewed sources.

Tariffs and Trade

Acknowledged concern about tariffs while calling the trade war a moving target with changing details, and said consumers will pay part of the cost and should expect impact. He also noted concern about China as a major importer of American agricultural products.

Energy and Data Centers

No documented position found in reviewed sources.

Energy

Advocates American energy independence through an 'all-of-the-above' approach that maximizes domestic natural resources to lower costs and create jobs. He opposes what he calls excessive federal regulation of energy producers.

Campaign Finance / Money in Politics

Calls curbing big money and political corruption his top priority, and says he accepts no corporate PAC money. He supports a constitutional amendment to overturn Citizens United and limit unlimited corporate and mega-donor political spending.

Government Ethics / Congressional Stock Trading

Would ban members of Congress and their spouses from buying, selling, or holding individual stocks while in office, citing access to nonpublic information. He also calls for stronger transparency and accountability standards across government.

Term Limits

Supports a constitutional amendment limiting senators to two terms (12 years) and representatives to six terms (12 years), and pledges to serve no more than two terms himself.

Supreme Court Ethics and Term Limits

Supports enforceable ethical standards for Supreme Court justices and a term-limit workaround short of a constitutional amendment, citing public support for both.

Campaign Finance and Congressional Stock Trading

No documented position found in reviewed sources.

Foreign Beef Imports

Opposes foreign beef imports, a position he emphasized in his 2026 Senate interview.

Iran / Use of Military Force

Calls the war in Iran unconstitutional and lacking an end goal, and argues the U.S. must commit to reopening the Strait of Hormuz rather than withdrawing prematurely.

Foreign Beef Imports

Criticized the Trump administration's foreign beef imports in 2026 and is pushing domestic cattle-production measures through his proposed RANCH Act.

National Security and Defense

Says his work on the Senate Armed Services Committee aims to keep the U.S. military the best in the world and to invest in South Dakota military technology. He frames border security as essential to national security.

Iran and Israel

Stated that Iran has financed Hamas, wants Israel destroyed, and has been pursuing nuclear weapons, and said Israel's 2025 strikes on Iran were a necessary defensive step. He said the U.S. stands with Israel and U.S. troops in the region, and in 2026 called for an endgame and national defense strategy for the war in Iran.

Federal Budget and National Debt

Supports balancing the federal budget and paying down the national debt, which he attributes largely to tax cuts since 2000. He proposes 'effects-based' budgeting and withholding members of Congress' salaries during government shutdowns.

Gun Policy

Describes himself as a gun owner who supports the right to bear arms and also favors 'reasonable gun safety measures.'

Abortion

Says he respects a woman's right to choose and supports abortion restrictions after the point of viability, with exceptions for the life or health of the mother.

LGBTQ Issues / Personal Freedom

Says he supports people loving whomever they want and argues government should stay out of personal life absent harm to others' rights.

Agriculture and Antitrust (Big Ag)

Supports aggressive antitrust enforcement to break up monopolistic agribusiness and meatpacking concentration, arguing corporate consolidation drives up consumer prices and has cost more than 100,000 family farms in the last decade.

Farm Bill

Would ensure the Farm Bill passes on time, fully fund SNAP including hot foods such as rotisserie chicken, tighten oversight of crop insurance abused by large operations, and add input-price transparency for small farmers. He also proposes tax changes to favor smaller farm operations and higher costs for large agribusiness landholdings.

Right to Repair

Supports a right-to-repair law requiring companies to give access to the tools, parts, and information needed to fix their products, citing farm equipment and appliances.

Tribal Representation and Native American Affairs

Pledges to seek a seat on the Senate Indian Affairs Committee, hire reservation-experienced staff, protect Native voting rights, and push increased funding for tribal healthcare, education, housing, and law enforcement. He also proposes fixing reservation population undercounts in the Census and removing benefit work penalties that discourage employment.

Redistricting and Partisan Gerrymandering

Supports federal redistricting reform to take map-drawing from partisan legislatures, which he says would make Congress more accountable and less gridlocked.

Education

No documented position found in reviewed sources.

Federal Budget and National Debt

Supports a balanced budget amendment to the Constitution and says he wants to actively manage the biggest debt drivers: Medicare, Medicaid, Social Security, and interest. He notes these mandatory payments were 71 percent of federal spending in FY2021 and are not voted on by Congress.

Agriculture

Calls protecting farmers and ranchers from overregulation a top Senate priority and supports shielding U.S. farmland from foreign purchase, naming China and Russia. He backs addressing meatpacker concentration and mandatory country-of-origin labeling for beef, and points to the 'Product of the USA' label rule.

Federal Spending Cuts / DOGE

Said he understands the intent behind DOGE cuts but that mistakes are being made, inviting constituents affected by cuts to report them. He described President Trump as wanting a more surgical approach and said DOGE shut programs without realizing the state and local impact.

Abortion

Describes himself as pro-life and notes that as South Dakota governor he signed the trigger law that took effect after Roe v. Wade was struck down in 2022, prohibiting abortion in South Dakota except when the mother's life is at risk.

Gun Policy

Describes himself as a strong supporter of the Second Amendment and says he works in the Senate to protect the rights of law-abiding gun owners.

Education

Supports local control of education and says federal 'one size fits all' directives do not serve children well; his campaign says he is working with President Trump to eliminate the Department of Education.

Technology and AI Competition with China

Emphasized the need for the United States to outpace China in artificial-intelligence progress.

Alignment with the Trump Agenda

States that he stands with President Trump and the 'America First' agenda and will support policies that put South Dakota and America first.

Tribal Representation and Native American Affairs

No documented position found in reviewed sources.