Mitchell woman grabs spot in uncontested State House race

Kaley Nolz replaces Ben Krohmer in District 20 contest

Rep. Ben Krohmer and Kaley Nolz. Nolz was selected by local elected Republican officials to replace Krohmer in the South Dakota State house starting next year. (Submitted)

GOP officials in and around Davison County know who they want representing them in the state House next year.

Republican Kaley Nolz defeated Mitchell Area Development Corporation CEO Mike Lauritsen by a vote of 35 to 15 during the party’s District 20 Central Committee Monday night to replace Rep. Ben Krohmer as one of two Republican candidates for state House in the upcoming election. And unless Democrats can fill some ballot vacancies of their own, the 27-year-old business woman has already secured a seat at the state Capitol.

“I am younger, and I have a stake in the future,” Nolz told The Dakota Scout after her successful bid for the district covering parts of Davison, Jerauld, Miner and Sanborn counties. “I want to make sure that District 20 continues to be a great community for me and my future kids. South Dakota is a great place to live and we should work to preserve it.”

After going unopposed in the GOP primary, Krohmer announced he was bowing out of a second term in the state House and endorsed Nolz as his successor.

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