Legislative District 28A has been extended to include about 2/3 of Perkins County, which was formerly in District 28B.
Presently District 28A is made up of Dewey, Corson and Ziebach counties, and 28B is comprised of Perkins, Harding and most of Butte counties.
The S.D. Legislature adopted the new legislative map in a special session after holding public hearings around the state.
District 28A State Rep. Oren Lesmeister (D-Parade) said he stated his support for leaving 28A and 28B as they are, but, he said, at the end of the day, it came down to the numbers.
The target population for 28A and 28B is 12,667. Before the new lines were drawn, 28A had 11,554 residents, and 28B had 14,389 - based on the 2020 Census.
Shane Penfield, who is State’s Attorney for Dewey, Ziebach, Corson and Perkins counties, agreed with Lesmeister that 28A and 28B should be left as they are and stated his personal opinion, as an individual, at the hearing in Mobridge.
The Census showed more population growth in the Belle Fourche area, Penfield said, which meant that some of 28B had to be moved to 28A to achieve the equal numbers.
Penfield said if a change had to be made, he favored moving the Lemmon area, in northern Perkins County, from 28B to 28A but that was not the final decision.
“At the end of the day it will have to work,” he said.
The portion of Perkins County that is being attached to District 28A includes the communities of Bison, Meadow and Prairie City.
Although District 28A has been a “majority minority” district set up to ensure Native American representation, the most recent Census showed lower population numbers in the Cheyenne River and Standing Rock areas. Lesmeister said the population is now almost a 50-50 split between Indian and non-Indian.
“We know the Census is under counted,” he said, “but those are the numbers we have to go by.”
The Senate District 28 (A & B combined) is currently represented in Pierre by Sen. Ryan Maher (R-Isabel)
Lesmeister is the 28A House representative and Sam Marty (R-Prairie City) is the 28B representative. Marty lives in the area being moved from 28B to 28A, while Maher and Lesmeister remain within their previous boundaries.