Two South Dakota legislators have introduced a bill and a joint resolution to amend the state constitution to reflect the fact that South Dakota has its first woman Governor.
Senator Erin Tobin of Winner and Representative Jess Olson of Rapid City say the bill (HB 1175) and the constitutional amendment (SJR 505) change references to the Governor and other officials in state statute and the state constitution to acknowledge this fact.
HB 1175 amends instances in state statute that refer to the Governor of South Dakota as “he” to now read “the Governor.” Similar changes are made for other state officials. SJR 505 makes the same changes in the South Dakota Constitution.
“We have a long history of strong female leaders in South Dakota,” said Representative Olson. “It’s time for our laws and Constitution to reflect the leaders that the people of South Dakota have elected to represent them.”
“Just over 100 years after women obtained the right to vote in South Dakota, we are finally coming forward with this language change,” said Senator Tobin. “I am excited to work with our first woman governor on this. My daughter will never have to question her place at the table because of this positive legislation.”
Kristi Lynn Noem is the first woman Governor of South Dakota.
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