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SCOUTING YESTERDAY: Candidate's entry into governor's race highlights intraparty acrimony
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SCOUTING YESTERDAY: Candidate's entry into governor's race highlights intraparty acrimony

This week in South Dakota history: Dec. 13-19

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Dan Gehlsen
Dec 19, 2023
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SCOUTING YESTERDAY: Candidate's entry into governor's race highlights intraparty acrimony
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Richard Kneip and William Dougherty (South Dakota Hall of Fame)

South Dakota’s Lt. Gov. William Dougherty announced he will seek the office of the governor on Dec. 19, 1973. According to the Lead Daily Call, Dougherty claimed he wasn’t running against any candidate but was instead only running for the office — as so many candidates still say to this day despite, in fact, having an ax to grind.

“I am today announcing my candidacy for the office of Governor of South Dakota. I run for governor not to oppose any man, but to add my voice to those who want to make South Dakota a better place to live for all its citizens” Dougherty said in Sioux Falls during his announcement.

Dougherty, a Sioux Falls livestock dealer, had yet to discuss his candidacy with the current governor, Richard Kneip. At the time, Kneip had already announced he would be seeking the Democratic Party’s nomination for governor, but was in a legal battle over whether or not he was allowed to seek the nomination.

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A constitutional amendment passed by voters in 1972 expanded the governor’s term from two to four years but also placed a two-term limit on the office. Kneip, elected governor in 1970 and again in 1972, had served two terms. When the governor filed for re-election in 1973, Secretary of State Lorna Herseth denied the application, believing the two-term limit applied,.

A rift had been growing in the state’s Democratic Party, according to the Argus Leader. Many in the party believed Kneip’s run violated a promise the governor made following his second election — to support Dougherty for the office following the completion of his second term.

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