Now that South Dakota's 2024 election is in the books, it's time to take a deep breath and step away from politics for a few months, right? Well, not quite.

U.S. Senate Republicans on Wednesday elected South Dakota Sen. John Thune as that chamber’s next majority leader during a closed-door, secret ballot election. When Thune takes over in January, it will mark the first time since 2007 that Kentucky Sen.

South Dakota Republican Gov. Kristi Noem is President-elect Donald Trump’s choice to run the federal Department of Homeland Security, according to CNN.

Republicans on Wednesday elected Senator John Thune of South Dakota, their No. 2 in the chamber, to serve as majority leader in the next Congress, choosing a G.O.P. institutionalist to replace Senator Mitch McConnell of Kentucky,

Attention is already turning to 2026, when South Dakota will elect a new governor as well as hold races for U.S. Senate.

President-elect Donald Trump picked South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem to head the Department of Homeland Security, as he zeroes in on border security.

Noem, 52, a Trump loyalist who has offered firm backing for the GOP leader's promise to carry out mass deportations, will preside over multiple agencies.

Progressive priorities such as abortion rights, grocery tax repeal and legalized recreational marijuana were all defeated.

South Dakota Sen. John Thune hailed his election as the next Senate Majority Leader Wednesday, vowing to work to enact Donald Trump's agenda and serve "the entire Republican conference" despite past differences with the president-elect.

South Dakota governor will take charge of a $60bn budget and federal agencies including the US Customs and Border Protection and the Secret Service