Pennington County Sample Ballot & Voter Guide 2026

Celestine Stadnick is a Democrat and school principal seeking a seat representing South Dakota Senate District 27, per South Dakota Public Broadcasting and her campaign site. She has worked as an educator for 12 years and holds a master's degree in Educational Administration and Leadership, per her campaign site. Stadnick grew up on the Pine Ridge Reservation and in Switzerland, per her campaign site.

Anthony Kathol is a Republican running for South Dakota Senate District 27, per his campaign site. He is a former commissioned officer of the United States Public Health Service who has also worked as an educator, small-business owner, and registered professional engineer, per his campaign site. Kathol, who lives in Martin, South Dakota, is a commissioned lay minister, per his campaign site.

Amber Hulse is the Republican incumbent state senator for South Dakota Senate District 30 in southwest South Dakota, running unopposed for reelection, per the South Dakota Legislature and South Dakota Public Broadcasting. She attended the University of South Dakota and Georgetown Law and works as an attorney, per South Dakota Public Broadcasting. No campaign website was found as of September 20, 2026.

Jeff Shelton is a Democrat and archaeologist seeking a seat representing South Dakota Senate District 32, which includes parts of Rapid City, per South Dakota Public Broadcasting. He has spent nearly a decade working with state and tribal agencies across South Dakota and is a co-founder of the South Dakota Data Center Accountability Pledge, per his questionnaire response to South Dakota Public Broadcasting.

Helene Duhamel is the Republican incumbent state senator for South Dakota Senate District 32, which includes parts of Rapid City, per South Dakota Public Broadcasting. She was first appointed to the seat in 2019 and has since won reelection three times, per South Dakota Public Broadcasting. Duhamel, a fifth-generation South Dakotan, previously worked as a television news journalist and currently works for the Pennington County Sheriff's Office, per South Dakota Public Broadcasting and her campaign site.

Chris Baumgartner is a Democrat seeking a seat representing South Dakota Senate District 33, which includes western Rapid City, per South Dakota Public Broadcasting. He grew up in Rapid City and has worked as a poll worker for three years, including for the LibertyLand TIF vote in Rapid City in January 2026, per his questionnaire response to South Dakota Public Broadcasting. His campaign lists a website, chrisforsenate33.com, but the page could not be verified because it did not return readable content when fetched. No campaign website was found as of September 20, 2026.

David Johnson is a Republican who has previously served in both the South Dakota House and Senate representing District 33 and is running for the District 33 Senate seat, which includes western Rapid City, per South Dakota Public Broadcasting. He served in the U.S. Air Force and owns Johnson Tree Service, Inc., which has operated since 1980, per South Dakota Public Broadcasting and his campaign site. Johnson is an alumnus of the South Dakota School of Mines and Technology, per his campaign site.

Greg Blanc is the Republican incumbent state senator for South Dakota Senate District 35, which includes western Rapid City and the Box Elder area, running unopposed for reelection, per South Dakota Public Broadcasting. He is a pastor and has served as a Rapid City Police Department chaplain for over 20 years, per his campaign site. Blanc serves on the Senate Judiciary, Taxation, and Military and Veteran Affairs committees, per his campaign site.

Liz May is the sitting Republican state representative for District 27, per the South Dakota Legislature's official roster. She and her husband operate a cow-calf ranch and a grocery store in Kyle, South Dakota, per her campaign site. She was born and raised in Harding County and has lived on the Pine Ridge Reservation for more than 40 years, per the same site.

Tim Goodwin is a retired U.S. Army officer who served 24 years, including as a paratrooper and combat medic with the 82nd Airborne Division, per South Dakota Public Broadcasting. Goodwin first won the District 30 seat in 2016, served six years including four as majority whip, and returned to the Legislature in 2025 after a two year absence, per South Dakota Public Broadcasting. Goodwin also spent 20 years as a home improvement sales manager, per South Dakota Public Broadcasting.

Nicole Uhre-Balk is an educator with more than a decade of experience teaching biology and computer science, and helped develop South Dakota's K-8 computer science standards, per South Dakota Public Broadcasting. Uhre-Balk is seeking a second term representing District 32 and says nine bills and resolutions were carried during the 2026 session, with three signed into law and two resolutions adopted, per Uhre-Balk's campaign site.

Zachary Martin has lived in the Rapid City area for eight years and describes himself as a businessman and community advocate, per Martin's campaign site. Martin runs a nonprofit called Kids Deserve Dads and coaches youth sports, per KOTA Territory News.

Duffy is a fourth generation South Dakotan who has spent an entire adult life in Rapid City, per South Dakota Public Broadcasting. Duffy has 30 years of business experience in sales and management, including more than a decade in real estate and affordable housing, per South Dakota Public Broadcasting.

Kari Hall is an educator and health advocate who describes herself as a nonprofit leader and communications professional, per South Dakota Public Broadcasting. Hall's work has involved building partnerships across sectors in the community, per South Dakota Public Broadcasting.

Curt Massie is a tax consultant who worked more than 24 years with the South Dakota Department of Revenue, including as a state tax auditor, per Massie's campaign site. Massie also farms and ranches, and the current term representing District 33 began in 2023, per South Dakota Public Broadcasting.

Victor Diego Dominquez grew up on the Pine Ridge Reservation and now lives in Rapid City, per South Dakota Public Broadcasting. Dominquez previously served in the U.S. Army National Guard, per South Dakota Public Broadcasting. No campaign website was found as of September 20, 2026.

Becky J Drury previously represented District 34 in the South Dakota House after being appointed by Governor Noem to the seat during the 2024 session, and served as House majority whip, per Drury's campaign site. Drury holds a master's degree in administration, has a background in telecommunications, and works as a paralegal, per South Dakota Public Broadcasting. Drury also previously served on the Rapid City Council, per South Dakota Public Broadcasting.

Ken Jeakins is a retired member of the U.S. Air Force who served in Security Forces and later worked in the utility industry, per South Dakota Public Broadcasting. Jeakins has lived in Box Elder for more than 20 years and previously co-chaired the Pennington County Relay For Life, per Jeakins's campaign site.

Dale Bartscher is associate director of South Dakota Right to Life and previously worked as a pastor, per South Dakota Public Broadcasting. Bartscher has lived in District 35 for more than 30 years and served as state political director for Attorney General Marty Jackley's 2018 campaign for governor, per South Dakota Public Broadcasting.