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Larry Rhoden
Rhoden in 2019
34th Governor of South Dakota
Incumbent
Assumed office January 25, 2025
Lieutenant	Tony Venhuizen
Preceded by	Kristi Noem
39th Lieutenant Governor of South Dakota
In office January 5, 2019 – January 25, 2025
Governor	Kristi Noem
Preceded by	Matt Michels
Succeeded by	Tony Venhuizen
Secretary of Agriculture of South Dakota
Acting
In office May 8, 2020 – August 27, 2020
Governor	Kristi Noem
Preceded by	Kim Vanneman
Succeeded by	Hunter Roberts (Agriculture and Natural Resources)
Member of the South Dakota House of Representatives from the 29th district
In office January 10, 2017 – January 5, 2019
Preceded by	Dean Wink
Succeeded by	Kirk Chaffee
In office January 9, 2001 – January 13, 2009
Preceded by	Kenneth McNenny
Succeeded by	Dean Wink
Member of the South Dakota Senate from the 29th district
In office January 13, 2009 – January 13, 2015
Preceded by	Kenneth McNenny
Succeeded by	Gary Cammack
Personal details
Born	(1959-02-05) February 5, 1959 (age 65) Sturgis, South Dakota, U.S.
Political party	Republican
Spouse	Sandy Murphy ​(m. 1981)​
Children	4
Military service
Allegiance	United States
Branch/service	United States Army
Years of service	1978–1985
Unit	South Dakota National Guard

Larry Rhoden (born February 5, 1959) is an American politician and businessman serving as the 34th governor of South Dakota since 2025.

A Republican, Rhoden served as a member of the state House of Representatives from 2001 to 2009 and from 2017 to 2019, as a member of the state senate from 2009 to 2015, and as the 39th lieutenant governor of South Dakota from 2019 to 2025. He ran for U.S. Senate in the 2014 election, losing in the Republican primary to eventual winner Mike Rounds.

Early life

Rhoden was born and raised on a farm. He grew up attending church, and graduated from Sunshine Bible Academy in 1977. After high school, he served in the South Dakota National Guard from 1978 to 1985. While his children were young, he served as a church trustee and on the local school board, and led the board of directors for the area Cenex.

Career

Rhoden served in the South Dakota House of Representatives from 2001 to 2008, including four years as majority leader. After being term-limited, he was elected to the state senate. In 2010, Rhoden ran for senate majority leader, but lost to Russell Olson.

Rhoden served on the Agriculture and Natural Resources and the State Affairs Committees. He backed bills to arm volunteers in schools, and sponsored a legislative finding that the "Founding Fathers freely and willingly abjured all legislative and executive authority to regulate gun ownership and usage… to individual citizens."

2014 U.S. Senate candidacy

Rhoden ran for a U.S. Senate seat in 2014, calling himself a "conservative voice for limited government". He spoke out against abortion, same-sex marriage, "career politicians", "activist judges", and immigration "amnesty". Rhoden signed a pledge to never raise taxes, and supported de-funding the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act.

Rhoden spoke at a conference organized by the conservative organization RedState, criticizing fellow candidate Mike Rounds's position on taxes. In the June 2 primary, Rounds defeated Rhoden, 41,377 votes to 13,393.

Lieutenant governor of South Dakota (2019–2025)

2018 gubernatorial election

On June 20, 2018, Republican gubernatorial nominee Kristi Noem announced that Rhoden would be her running mate. Noem had said the role of a lieutenant governor, "I would do it a little differently maybe than Daugaard and Michels have done it... I don’t see the lieutenant governor filling as big a role as Michels did. I'm just a believer that there are certain decisions the governor has to make, and so maybe it would be more of a traditional role than what we saw in the last administration."

Tenure

Rhoden took office on January 5, 2019. On May 5, 2020, Noem announced that South Dakota Secretary of Agriculture Kim Vanneman would resign effective May 8, and that Rhoden was being named interim agriculture secretary. On August 27, Noem announced that she was merging the Department of Agriculture and the Department of Environment and Natural Resources into a Department of Agriculture and Natural Resources, to be led by Secretary Hunter Roberts, thereby ending Rhoden's role as interim secretary.

On June 20, 2020, at the Republican State Convention, Rhoden was elected to be one of South Dakota's three Republican presidential electors, along with Noem and Attorney General Jason Ravnsborg.

Governor of South Dakota (2025–present)

In November 2024, President-elect Donald Trump announced that he would nominate Kristi Noem for Secretary of Homeland Security. After her confirmation on January 25, 2025, she resigned as governor of South Dakota and Rhoden was subsequently sworn in. He chose Tony Venhuizen as his Lieutenant Governor. On January 30, both the South Dakota Senate and South Dakota House of Representatives unanimously confirmed Venhuizen.

Personal life

Rhoden lives in Union Center, South Dakota. He and his wife, Sandy, have four children and seven grandchildren. Rhoden is a rancher by trade and runs and owns a cow-calf operation and custom welding business.

Notes

References

1. "Larry Rhoden succeeds to governor of South Dakota". KELOLAND.com. January 25, 2025. Retrieved January 25, 2025.
2. ^ "South Dakota Governor". January 25, 2025.
3. "Our Campaigns - SD State Senate 29 Race - Nov 04, 2008".
4. ^ "Larry Rhoden".
5. Weigel, David (July 31, 2013). "Mike Rounds, the Republican Most Likely to Take Over a Democratic Senate Seat, and His Struggles With the Tea Party". Slate Magazine. Retrieved January 6, 2023.
6. "Governor Kristi Noem - South Dakota: America's Beacon of Freedom". Archived from the original on August 25, 2018.
7. ^ Montgomery, David (July 9, 2013). "Who is Larry Rhoden?". Argus Leader. Retrieved August 16, 2013.
8. "Senator Larry Rhoden". South Dakota Legislature. Archived from the original on September 1, 2013. Retrieved August 16, 2013.
9. Montgomery, David (July 10, 2013). "Rhoden strikes conservative tone in campaign kickoff". Argus Leader. Retrieved August 16, 2013.
10. Montgomery, David (July 30, 2013). "Senate hopeful Larry Rhoden says his hard line aligns with right". Argus Leader. Retrieved August 16, 2013.
11. Montgomery, David (August 2, 2013). "Rhoden: Stand by your position". Argus Leader. Retrieved August 16, 2013.
12. "2014 Election Results" (PDF). sdsos.gov. Retrieved May 17, 2020.
13. Woster, Kevin. "Next up for Noem: picking a running mate, planning a general-election race, holding a rummage sale". SDPB.org. South Dakota Public Broadcasting.
14. "Noem Appoints Lt. Gov as Interim Ag Secretary". SDPB.org. South Dakota Public Broadcasting. May 5, 2020. Retrieved May 6, 2020.
15. "Governor Noem announces Merging of Agriculture and Environment and Natural Resources Departments". news.sd.gov. August 27, 2020. Retrieved August 30, 2020.
16. "Convention Results". southdakotagopconvention.com. June 20, 2020. Archived from the original on November 16, 2020. Retrieved July 7, 2020.
17. Engelkes, Cale; Mercer, Bob (January 25, 2025). "Larry Rhoden succeeds to governor of South Dakota". Keloland Local News. Retrieved January 25, 2025.
18. https://www.kccrradio.com/2025/01/29/rhoden-selects-tony-venhuizen-to-serve-as-lieutenant-governor/
19. "The Governor's Team". governor.sd.gov. Retrieved January 26, 2025.
20. Hayworth, Bret (July 10, 2013). "Politically Speaking: Rhoden enters S.D. Senate race, setting GOP primary with Mike Rounds". Sioux City Journal. Retrieved August 16, 2013.

External links

• Official site of the Governor of South Dakota
• Larry Rhoden at Ballotpedia
• Goveror's official web page
• Our Campaigns – Larry Rhoden (SD) profile

v t e Statewide political officials of South Dakota
U.S. senators	John Thune Mike Rounds
U.S. representative	Dusty Johnson, At-large representative
State government	Larry Rhoden, Governor Vacant, Lieutenant Governor Monae Johnson, Secretary of State Marty Jackley, Attorney General Josh Haeder, Treasurer Rich Sattgast, Auditor Brock Greenfield, School and Public Lands Commissioner Kristie Fiegen, Gary W. Hanson, Chris Nelson, Public Utilities Commissioners
Senate	Vacant, President Chris Karr, President pro tempore Jim Mehlhaff, Majority Leader Liz Larson, Minority Leader
House	Jon Hansen, Speaker Karla Lems, Speaker pro tempore Scott Odenbach, Majority Leader Erin Healy, Minority Leader
Supreme Court (appointed)	Steven R. Jensen, Chief Justice Janine M. Kern Mark Salter Patricia DeVaney Scott P. Myren, Associate Justices

v t e Governors and lieutenant governors of South Dakota
Governors	Mellette Sheldon Lee Herreid Elrod Crawford Vessey Byrne Norbeck McMaster Gunderson Bulow Green Berry Jensen Bushfield Sharpe G.T. Mickelson Anderson Foss Herseth Gubbrud Boe Farrar Kneip Wollman Janklow G.S. Mickelson Miller Janklow Rounds Daugaard Noem Rhoden
Lieutenant governors	Fletcher Hoffman Herreid Hindman Kean Snow McDougall Shober Byrne Abel Norbeck McMaster Gunderson Forney Covey Coyne J. Grigsby Whitney Ustrud Peterson McMurchie A. Miller S. Grigsby Terry Houck Lindley Bottum Boe Overpeck Abdnor Dougherty Wollman Hansen W. Miller Kirby Hillard Daugaard Michels Rhoden Venhuizen

• 1959 births
• 21st-century members of the South Dakota Legislature
• 21st-century South Dakota politicians
• 2020 United States presidential electors
• Lieutenant governors of South Dakota
• Living people
• Republican Party members of the South Dakota House of Representatives
• People from Meade County, South Dakota
• People from Sturgis, South Dakota
• South Dakota National Guard personnel
• Ranchers from South Dakota
• Businesspeople from South Dakota
• Republican Party South Dakota state senators
• Republican Party governors of South Dakota