Stu Whitney, South Dakota News Watch
There will be lots of history made if South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem is confirmed as secretary of the Department of Homeland Security in President-elect Donald Trump’s administration, as multiple national outlets reported Tuesday.
Noem, in her second term as Republican governor, would become the first South Dakotan to serve as a president’s Cabinet secretary, extending an alliance with Trump that first developed during her time in Congress.
It would also be the first time a South Dakota governor hands over the reins of power during a legislative session, assuming Noem waits to resign until she is confirmed by the U.S. Senate, a process set for January at the earliest.
That puts the focus on Lt. Gov. Larry Rhoden, a 65-year-old Meade County rancher and legislative veteran who would be thrust into the spotlight as the state’s 34th governor.
Rhoden would also preside over a consequential 2025 legislative session fraught with budgetary battles and Republican infighting, all while potentially preparing for a 2026 gubernatorial election in which he would be the incumbent candidate.
“Having a changeover happen during the legislative session would be a first,” said Rep. Tony Venhuizen, R-Sioux Falls, Noem’s former chief of staff and a curator of South Dakota gubernatorial history.
“We’re fortunate that (Rhoden) is a longtime legislator who has been heavily engaged in past sessions and would be well-prepared to step in at any point.”
Neither Rhoden nor Noem’s office responded to requests for comment Tuesday.
Legislative experience seen as valuable
Rhoden, a resident of Union Center, served in the state House of Representatives from 2001-09 and 2017-19, including a stint as House majority leader from 2005-08. He served in the state Senate from 2009-2015 and chaired the State Affairs Committee.
Rhoden finished second in the 2014 Republican primary for governor to now-U.S. Senator Mike Rounds, with Rhoden drawing 18% of the vote.
Longtime Republican legislator Lee Schoenbeck, who stepped down this year and was clearing out his state Capitol office on Tuesday, told News Watch that it “would not be the best thing” to have the transition occur in the middle of session.
He said that Noem could potentially resign earlier to accommodate Rhoden if she were sure to get confirmed in the U.S. Senate, where Republicans will have the majority and South Dakota U.S. Sen. John Thune is favored to become party leader in a caucus vote Wednesday.
Either way, said Schoenbeck, Rhoden has a “steady hand” to handle the role from a legislative perspective, drawing a contrast between Noem and Rhoden in terms of focus on day-to-day operations at the Capitol.
While Noem was criticized for frequent travel outside the state and pursuing national political goals, Rhoden could be found in the Capitol hallways chatting with lawmakers when he wasn’t presiding over the Senate.
“He’s been way more engaged in the Legislature during his lifetime,” said Schoenbeck, who presided over the executive board for the Legislative Research Council in Pierre on Tuesday. “His entire political experience, other than a brief stint on the Meade County School Board, is all about the Legislature. I think his ability to work with and understand those relationships will put him in a strong position. He’s somebody that you might not agree with on every issue, but you can still work together. Nobody agrees with everybody.”
In 2023, when Schoenbeck was in a Senate leadership position and publicly feuded with Noem, he told News Watch: “If I have any questions, I contact Larry.”
Rhoden’s style: ‘Personable and direct’
It’s an open question whether Rhoden will have the same sway with the 2025 Legislature, which features new faces and re-structured leadership that reflects recent electoral gains by the GOP’s populist wing.
Freedom Caucus members have clashed with Noem over their contention that she took establishment positions initially on COVID restrictions, transgender rights and carbon pipelines, with Rhoden caught in the crossfire.
He was challenged at the 2022 party convention by former Speaker of the House Steve Haugaard and escaped with a narrow win, an episode that widened the populists’ rift with Noem.
Jim Bolin, a Canton legislator who served 16 years in Pierre but was term-limited in 2024, told News Watch that Rhoden could have the right temperament to navigate choppy political waters.
“I would describe him as personable and direct,” said Bolin. “He doesn’t beat around the bush. Having the transition (in the middle of session) might be challenging, but a lot of the people who have worked in the executive branch have been there for many years. They probably aren’t leaving South Dakota to become part of Homeland Security, so that will help make it easier. The issues themselves will be difficult, but the transition can be handled.”
Rhoden could run as incumbent in 2026
At a Mitchell town hall earlier this year, Noem credited Rhoden with helping her learn the ropes in 2007 as a rookie legislator in Pierre, something she kept in mind when it came time to choose a running mate for her 2018 gubernatorial run.
“Because I was a farmer and rancher, I was advised to choose a businessman from Sioux Falls,” Noem told attendees. “So instead I chose a rancher from West River. I trust his instincts and values. He loves the Lord and loves his family. I knew that if I got killed the next day, he’d run this state exactly as I would, and that was important to me.”
Rhoden, who runs a cow-calf operation and custom welding business near Union Center, joined the South Dakota National Guard after graduating from high school and served six years.
He has four sons with his wife, Sandy, and also six grandchildren.
Accepting the role as Noem’s lieutenant governor in 2018, he said it was clear that “Kristi is fighting for something much bigger than herself, and she expects the same of those serving in her administration.”
Rhoden withstood Noem’s often-turbulent time in office, marked by five different chiefs of staff and no one currently in that role. The administration saw higher-than-normal turnover among Cabinet positions and executive staff.
Rhoden is viewed as a likely candidate for governor in 2026, which would mean a highly competitive GOP primary battle against U.S. Rep. Dusty Johnson and possibly Attorney General Marty Jackley, among other candidates.
Past transitions include 1993 tragedy
This would mark the third time that a South Dakota lieutenant governor has taken the reins as top executive while a term was still ongoing.
Democratic governor Dick Kneip resigned in July 1978 to become U.S. ambassador to Singapore under President Jimmy Carter, ending his final term about five months early. He handed the reins to former state Sen. Harvey Wollman, who had already lost the Democratic primary for governor but served until Republican Gov. Bill Janklow took office in January 1979.
The next occurrence was prompted by one of South Dakota’s most profound tragedies. George Mickelson was killed April 19, 1993, when a propeller blade broke loose on his airplane and it crashed into a farm silo about 10 miles south of Dubuque, Iowa, killing everyone on board.
Also killed in the crash were two state pilots, Ron Becker and David Hanson, banker David Birkeland, power company executive Angus Anson, Sioux Falls Development Foundation leader Roger Hainje, economic development commissioner Roland Dolly and energy commissioner Ron Reed.
Lt. Gov. Walter Dale Miller, a Meade County rancher and former speaker of the House, then became the oldest person to serve as governor at age 67.
He declared the rest of April a special period of mourning after huddling in Pierre with staff members, who had received a call from the Federal Aviation Administration around 5 p.m. with news that the state-owned plane had gone down.
Plans were made for Miller to be sworn in as governor the next day. As he left the Capitol on the night of the tragedy, he had a simple message for reporters that had gathered.
“Say a prayer for us,” he said.
Janklow challenged Miller in the 1994 Republican primary and prevailed, setting up his return to Pierre for two terms, followed by eight-year stints by Rounds and Dennis Daugaard and what appears to be a truncated tenure for Noem.