South Dakota’s election denialists are turning on Secretary of State Monae Johnson. After helping the underqualified Johnson oust incumbent and Republican favorite Steve Barnett at the 2022 SDGOP convention, the Trumpists at South Dakota Canvassing are running rookie Rep. Heather Baxter (R-34/Rapid City) for South Dakota’s top election official:
Rep. Heather Baxter of Rapid City said on Monday she’s running.
“Our elections must reflect the will of the people,” Baxter said in her announcement. “As Secretary of State, I will bring fresh leadership to the fight for accessibility, accountability, and security to ensure every South Dakotan’s voice is heard and every vote is counted publicly and accurately.”
…Members of the Trump-aligned election-integrity group South Dakota Canvassing supported Johnson over Barnett.
But in the past two years, South Dakota Canvassing has turned away from Johnson. Baxter announced her candidacy in part through a South Dakota Canvassing post on Monday [Bob Mercer, “Baxter Challenging Johnson for GOP Nomination,” KELO-TV, 2025.09.22].
Baxter was a nay on the Rhoden/Venhuizen prison bill on Tuesday, so that’s a pretty good indication of her hard-right mugwumpery.
Baxter and Johnson’s contest for the wingnut vote opens the door for some sane Republican—maybe Steve Barnett, or maybe the indomitable Shantel Krebs, who has some experience storming into the fray to clean up Republican house, or even Jason Williams, who’s less exciting than Krebs but would at least know what he’s doing—to jump into the 2026 SDGOP convention and win the nomination from Republicans who just want competent election management and not Pillow Guy conspiracy theories.
If a majority of the delegates are in the far white wing of the SDGOP won’t Baxter have the best chance for nomination at their 2026 state convention.