News
Concerns raised over an energy storage project along the Missouri River
Backers of a multibillion-dollar proposal in rural south-central South Dakota say they have a way to capture and store renewable energy for later use. The clean energy pitch has drawn criticism and concern from nearby landowners, however, who worry that the project could damage the environment and impact recreational opportunities in south-central South Dakota. Project […]
USDA invests $10.5 million into South Dakota meat processing
The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) is investing $10.5 million in two South Dakota loan associations that aim to expand meat processing capacity in the state. The funds are part of the department’s Meat and Poultry Processing Expansion Program. The South Central South Dakota loan association known as Planning & Development District III will receive […]
All eyes again on the Peach State: Georgia voters asked to decide U.S. Senate control
ALBANY, Ga.—Shayla Jackson knocks three times before slipping a card with voting information under the blue-painted doors of apartments at Wild Pines, a complex tucked behind Albany State University. As a canvasser for the nonpartisan New Georgia Project, a group dedicated to registering Black, brown and young voters and getting them to the polls, she’ll […]
Wind energy is now South Dakota’s No. 1 producer of electricity, but not every day
Wind has surpassed hydroelectric power as the largest generator of electricity in South Dakota. Last year, over 52% of the electricity generated in the state came from wind turbines. That’s because of a large number of new, better turbines built in recent years. The state was home to 526 turbines before 2019. Another 511 were […]
Control of U.S. Senate still a guess ahead of midterm elections
WASHINGTON — Democrats and Republicans have just a handful of frantic days left to convince voters who should control Congress before voting in the Nov. 8 midterm elections ends. The two political parties are spending millions on campaign ads and mailers in the dozens of toss-up races that will determine control of Congress, while President […]
Analysis: Over one-third of state legislative races already decided
Election day is a week away, but more than a third of South Dakota’s state legislative races are already decided. Of 105 seats up for grabs in the South Dakota Senate or House of Representatives, 38% are unopposed races. A clear majority of Senate seats — exactly 60% — are unopposed. Every unopposed candidate is […]
Circuit court bench in SD struggles to diversify
Just under half the people in state prisons in South Dakota are people of color, but none of the judges who sent them there are. The general election on Nov. 8 won’t change that. Circuit judges in South Dakota, who preside over the felony criminal cases that can send a defendant to prison, come up […]
Five aim to fill West River judicial post Nov. 8
Contested circuit judge elections are a rarity in South Dakota. Just one sitting judge, Robert Spears in central South Dakota’s Third Circuit, faces a challenge this year. Another open seat in the Sioux Falls area has two candidates. The Fourth Circuit, however, will make history on Nov. 8, when voters will choose from five judicial […]
SD State Fair attendance nears pre-pandemic levels
More than 192,000 people attended the South Dakota State Fair in Huron in 2022, marking a return to pre-pandemic levels. The exact attendance figure released Monday by the South Dakota Department of Agriculture and Natural Resources was 192,279 guests across the five-day event in early September, with nearly 2,000 campers staying on the fairgrounds. Fairgoers […]
U.S. Supreme Court justices cast doubt on affirmative action in college admissions
WASHINGTON — The U.S. Supreme Court’s conservative majority on Monday questioned the legality of race-conscious policies in college admissions, as the justices weighed two cases that could upend the admissions process many colleges use to try to boost diversity on campus. At issue are two cases that challenge the lawfulness of affirmative action at Harvard […]
Even as drought forces water cutbacks, climate gets short shrift in midterm election
LAKE MEAD, Nev. —The streaks of white on the rock ringing the nation’s largest reservoir show how far its water levels have dropped since it was last full. Lake Mead and nearby Lake Powell, which send water to 40 million people in the Southwest, are at their lowest levels since they were filled in the […]
Public-land hunters and anglers push for one of their own to fill vacant commission seat
Some public-land hunters and anglers feel underrepresented by the current Game, Fish and Parks Commission, and they hope to see a board member from a grassroots group – like the South Dakota Wildlife Federation or Black Hills Sportsmen Club – appointed to a vacant seat. The GF&P Commission consists of eight members appointed by the […]