South Dakota House Republicans Replace Entire Leadership Team
Mike Stevens and Amber Arlint lead a new slate that reflects a partisan realignment following the June primaries.
By Amit Chukwu ·
South Dakota House Republicans selected a completely new leadership slate on Monday, replacing every member of the previous team. The move concludes a series of internal party changes that began after a contentious election cycle. Mike Stevens of Yankton is the nominee for speaker of the House. Amber Arlint of Sioux Falls is the nominee for speaker pro tempore.
Taylor Rehfeldt of Sioux Falls will serve as majority leader, marking her return to a top position after being removed from that role following the 2024 elections. Drew Peterson of Salem will act as assistant majority leader. The new majority whip team includes Nick Fosness of Britton, Mellissa Heermann of Brookings, Brian Mulder of Sioux Falls, Matt Roby of Watertown, and Mike Weisgram of Fort Pierre.
The leadership change reflects a power shift within the party that accelerated during the 2024 legislative race. At that time, opponents of a proposed carbon-capture pipeline helped defeat 14 incumbent Republican legislators. The newly elected faction subsequently used eminent domain rules to restrict carbon pipelines and worked to limit state involvement in economic development projects, including incentives for large data centers.
Rehfeldt spearheaded the effort to regain control during the 2026 primary season. She chairs the South Dakota Republican Forward political action committee, which spent approximately $670,000 to influence the June legislative primaries. The state-level group received $675,000 from the federally registered Republican Forward political action committee.
Funding for the campaign came from various sources, including six-figure contributions from the Poet biofuels company, Midcontinent Media Inc., and Dana Dykhouse, the CEO of First Premier Bank. These financial efforts helped replace 16 incumbent Republican legislators with new Republican nominees in June, setting the stage for the current leadership restructuring.
The House changes mirror similar shifts in the state Senate. On Friday, Republican senators nominated Tim Reed of Brookings as Senate president pro tempore. Casey Crabtree of Madison will serve as majority leader, while Amber Hulse of Hot Springs will be assistant majority leader. The Senate majority whip team consists of Randy Deibert of Spearfish, Helene Duhamel of Rapid City, Jim Mehlhaff of Pierre, and Stephanie Sauder of Bryant.
Mehlhaff and Deibert are the only holdovers from the previous Senate leadership team. Mehlhaff previously served as majority leader, while Deibert had already been serving as a majority whip. In the House, Democratic members selected Eric Emery of Rosebud as minority leader and Kadyn Wittman of Sioux Falls as assistant minority leader. Nicole Uhre-Balk of Rapid City and Sonja Mentzer of Sioux Falls will serve as minority whips.
The two Democratic members of the state Senate, both from Sioux Falls, selected Liz Larson as minority leader and Erik Muckey as assistant minority leader. Legislative leaders hold the authority to appoint committee members and chairs, assign bills to committees, and set the daily agenda for their respective chambers. They also lead internal caucuses where members discuss party positions on pending legislation.
The annual legislative session is scheduled to begin on January 12 in Pierre. The session will last 38 days. The new chamber will feature a partisan split of 92 Republicans, 12 Democrats, and one independent. In the Senate, Republicans hold a 33-2 advantage over Democrats. In the House, Republicans have a 59-10 advantage over Democrats, with one independent member.
