South Dakota Democrats hopeful, not yet ready to endorse Harris as presidential nominee

First lady Jill Biden, U.S. President Joe Biden, U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris and second gentleman Douglas Emhoff join hands as they depart a ”Reproductive Freedom Campaign Rally” at George Mason University on January 23, 2024 in Manassas, Virginia. (Photo by Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)

South Dakota Democrats are more optimistic about their party’s chances of holding the White House following President Joe Biden’s departure from the race, but state leaders have yet to coalesce around his chosen successor, Vice President Kamala Harris.

Not all party leaders in South Dakota have remained neutral, however.

Democrats in South Dakota’s second-largest county by population, Pennington County, opted to endorse Harris. Pennington County Democratic Party Chair Annie Bachand issued a statement praising President Joe Biden for his “tremendous service to our country” following his announcement on Sunday.

Biden endorsed Harris shortly after announcing his departure.

“Vice President Harris has consistently demonstrated her leadership, resilience, and dedication to personal freedom and the safety of our children,” said Bachand, who leads the Democrats in Rapid City. “We are excited to campaign for a strong leader who embodies the principles of our party and our country.”

The South Dakota Democratic Party has yet to endorse a replacement candidate for Biden.

Director Dan Ahlers praised Biden’s leadership but said Monday that the party awaits guidance and will be watching as the nominating process takes shape.

The party issued a press release Monday morning noting that it would take its cues from the national party on the nomination. Democratic National Committee Chair Jaime Harrison pledged a “transparent and orderly process” for selecting the nominee.

The state party also heaped praise on the Biden administration for “doing more for South Dakota in four years than most presidents do in eight.”

“He helped us recover from a devastating pandemic, made historic investments into our infrastructure, strengthened relations with Tribal Nations, protected our farmers and ranchers, made healthcare more affordable and defended people’s individual freedoms,” the press release said.

Erin Royer, who leads the Minnehaha County Democrats, said via text that the group’s leadership had yet to meet to discuss backing a candidate. The Sioux Falls-based group is taking its cues from the state party, she said.

Mary Perpich is the chair for the Brookings County Democrats. She said her group is in the same position, having not met to formally discuss the question of potential presidential candidates.

“The Brookings County Democrats will support whomever is chosen as the party’s candidate at the convention,” Perpich said.

Reactions across the nation

Biden’s withdrawal marks the latest in modern history for a party’s presumptive nominee in a presidential contest. President Lyndon Johnson chose not to run for reelection in March of 1968. Vice President Hubert Humphrey went on to accept the party’s nomination before losing in the general election to Richard Nixon.

Several state party leaders threw their support behind Harris on Sunday and Monday, though many others have taken positions similar to South Dakota’s.

Democrats in Nebraska , Maryland , Florida , New Hampshire , Alabama , North Carolina and Virginia were among the states where Democrats backed Harris.

Indiana’s state Democratic leader, however, told States Newsroom that Biden’s delegates are “ unattached ” to candidates as the Democratic National Convention approaches. Maine, Kentucky and North Dakota are among the states whose parties have yet to back a candidate, though some leaders have endorsed Harris. Rhode Island democrats will meet Wednesday to vote on a Harris endorsement.

VP Harris cites Biden’s ‘legacy of accomplishment’ as endorsements pile up for her bid

Harris has already scored several endorsements from key leaders at the national level. California Gov. Gavin Newsom, mentioned as a possible Democratic contender himself, endorsed Harris quickly on Sunday. Former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi endorsed Harris Monday. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries have not endorsed Harris, but Jeffries said Monday that Harris had “excited the House Democratic Caucus and she’s exciting the country.”

The DNC will move forward with the process to formally nominate a presidential candidate Wednesday when its Rules Committee meets in a public virtual session amid ongoing efforts to set up a virtual roll call vote ahead of the convention next month in Chicago.

Impact on national race, South Dakota ballot initiative

The excitement factor is important, said Drey Samuelson, a longtime democratic political operative.

Samuelson, who worked for former South Dakota Democratic Sen. Tom Daschle and former South Dakota Democratic Rep. Tim Johnson, is more hopeful about the 2024 presidential race today than he was before Biden’s announcement.

“Biden withdrawing from the race will both increase the odds of holding the White House, but also doing a fair amount better in the down ballot races that depend on high voter turnout for the top of the ticket,” Samuelson said. “Biden’s poll numbers with Black voters, Hispanic voters, and young (voters) were all quite anemic, and there’s every reason to believe that the nominee — which certainly seems like it’s going to be Kamala Harris — will do a fair amount better.”

The excitement factor is unlikely to sway South Dakota’s choice for president, according to University of South Dakota Professor of Political Science Michael Card.

South Dakota Democratic Party stops short of endorsing Harris after Biden bows out of the race

“It could reduce Trump’s victory margin,” Card said. “But I don’t see anyone other than Donald Trump getting South Dakota’s three electoral votes.”

There are other potential positives if Harris — or a yet-unknown candidate — can reignite a sense of enthusiasm for the state’s more liberal voters. South Dakota voters will decide on a ballot measure that would reinstate the right to abortion. The state’s near-total abortion ban took effect in 2022 after the U.S. Supreme Court overturned the Roe v. Wade decision that had legalized abortion nationwide for nearly 50 years.

Biden and Harris have both railed against the Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization decision, but Harris has been particularly aggressive as a backer of reproductive rights on the campaign trail.

“This is someone who’s very much wanting to overturn the overturning,” Card said.

Card also said Harris’ tenure as a prosecutor – she served as California’s Attorney General before her career in the U.S. Senate began – could make it more difficult for Republicans to paint Democrats as soft on crime.

Even so, he understands the reticence in Harris endorsements from South Dakota’s Democratic leadership. The nominating process is a procedural one tied to party rules at the national level.

“I can see why some would endorse Kamala Harris right away to try to give her momentum. The second part is that I can understand why a county would not make an endorsement, because the process will take place with the convention … you want to follow the process, and that is to let the delegates vote.”

Pete Stavrianos, a one-time operative for former South Dakota Senator and Democratic Presidential nominee George McGovern, sounded a cautious but hopeful note in a statement to South Dakota Searchlight on the question of Harris as the party’s nominee. If the race is about the future, as opposed to who is responsible for the recent past of inflation or issues at the U.S. border, Stravrianos likes the Democrats’ chances.

He said he hopes that if Harris becomes the party’s nominee, that she makes a “bold VP pick” like Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer to set up an all-woman ticket. Whitmer has endorsed Harris.

“Only such a pick will permit a contrast between Trump as an aging voice of the divisive political past and the Harris ticket as a preview of a more positive and practical problem-solving future,” he said.

– South Dakota Searchlight reporter Joshua Haiar contributed to this report

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The post South Dakota Democrats hopeful, not yet ready to endorse Harris as presidential nominee appeared first on South Dakota Searchlight .