Dan and I built our business and raised our family in Yankton because we could afford to put down roots here. That opportunity should not be out of reach for young families today. Housing is a workforce issue and a community survival issue. When people cannot find affordable homes near their work, our towns lose the teachers, nurses, and young families who keep communities alive. During my time on the Joint Appropriations Committee, I directed investments supporting housing statewide. That is work I am eager to continue partnering with South Dakota Housing and local communities to expand access and find practical solutions that help more working families afford a home.
As a grandmother of 10, I believe every South Dakota child deserves a strong start and a clear path forward. That happens best when local schoolboards are empowered to make decisions for their own communities. Yankton's Trailhead Learning Center, the only public ECE center offering free preschool in South Dakota, is exactly the kind of innovation that emerges when local boards are engaged and trusted. Early childhood education improves kindergarten readiness, graduation rates and long- term outcomes for kids, and we should be encouraging more of it. Local boards know their communities best, and our constitution makes it the legislature's duty to ensure they have the resources to serve every child. A commitment worth keeping
South Dakota's initiative and referendum process gives citizens a direct check on their government, and I support it, especially when voters use it to disagree with a decision the legislature made. I have been there, and I respect it. Having served in Pierre, I have seen how that accountability makes legislators more thoughtful. What makes the process work well is transparency. Voters deserve accurate information about who is behind the measure and what interests are funding it. In the end, an informed South Dakotan is our democracy's greatest safeguard.
Every eligible South Dakotan should be able to cast a ballot, and every cast ballot should be counted accurately. Those goals reinforce each other. Recently passed laws place new responsibilities on county auditors, and implementation right matters. South Dakotan are reasonable people. They want to know the process is fair, that their vote counts, and that the results can be trusted. That means good training, clear standards, and transparency at every step. Every voter in District 18, rural or urban, deserves the same access, the same experience at the polls, and the same confidence in the outcome
Affordable, quality childcare is both a family issue and economic issue. Dan and I know firsthand what it means to juggle work and family. We were fortunate to have support around us, but I have talked with countless parents across Yankton and Clay County who do not have those same options. When parents cannot find reliable care, they leave the workforce, and South Dakota businesses and communities feel that loss directly. During my time in the Legislature, I support SB 125 (2004) launching a statewide childcare study to target solutions where they are actually needed. If returned to Pierre, I will build on that work through community partnerships and local provider support.
Dan and I raised four children here and now have ten grandchildren. I want them to have every reason to stay in South Dakota. But last year our state lost more college-educated residents than any other in the nation. Too many young people cannot find work that does not pay enough, or a home they can afford, so they leave. Keeping them here means investing be better schools, more good-paying jobs and housing that working families can actually afford. Those were my priorities during my years co-chairing the Joint Committee on Appropriation, and they are why I want to return to Pierre.
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