The Constitution Party says it is fielding two Legislative candidates.
In its website sidebar, the Constitution Party lists Rick Gortmaker as a candidate for District 35 House and David Osmotherly (apparently you may call him “Dave Oz”, not to be confused with “Davos,” which represents globalism of which CPers are deeply suspicious) for District 30 House.
CP leader Lori Stacey says Rapid City’s Gortmaker is a “long-time” CPer. Gortmaker had a towing business, All Extreme Towing & Recovery, registered with the state in the 2000s, but that business registration lapsed in 2010.
Osmotherly is a rare CP bird in that he actually holds public office! He was appointed to the Oelrichs School Board in 2016 and continues to serve as board president. However, the CP can’t tout him as possibly the only CPer in government in South Dakota yet: according to the voter registration database, David Osmotherly of Oelrichs is registered Republican.
Osmotherly has almost three months to switch his registration: the Constitution Party doesn’t hold its convention until Saturday, July 14, in Sioux Falls at American Legion Post #15, up on the north side of town west of Terrace Park. Note that, on this point, the Constitution Party is showing more sense than any other party in the state by holding its convention later than everyone else. Libertarians convened last weekend in Sioux Falls; Democrats convene June 15–16 in Sioux Falls, and Republicans convene June 20–23 in Pierre. The Constitution Party can thus make the most of the time available to recruit candidates for Legislative races, whom they as an “alternative party” can nominate for the first time this year thanks to their successful lawsuit with the Libertarians and House Bill 1286.
Besides, further into summer we do convention, the better chance there is that Osmotherly absolutely, positively won’t be called away to move snow, which he is willing to do for $100 an hour.
These two CP candidates thus bring the statewide count of alternative candidates for Legislature to nine. The South Dakota Libertarian Party has fielded five Legislative candidates: Oakes for District 30 Senate, Hill for D-28B House, Baldwin for D-17 House, Aylward for D-6 House, and Root for D-4 House. The Libertarian Party nominated Oakes and Root by convention last weekend, making them the groundbreakers on HB 1286. We also have two independent House candidates: Ellis in District 7 and, our newest entry, Douglas HS debate coach Nick Reid, who filed his petition to run for District 33 House on Thursday.