2024 Voter Guide – SD LEGISLATURE
You’ll find information on:
Sanctity of Life
Do the candidates support protections for unborn life?
Education Options
Do the candidates support all forms of education, including private schools and home school?
Marijuana Regulations
Are the candidates committed to keeping marijuana from running rampant in our communities?
Age Verification
Do the candidates support safeguards to keep young children from accessing explicit content online?
DISTRICT 18
Green: Strong voting record or survey response
Grey: Mixed voting record or inconclusive survey response
Red: Weak voting record or survey response
“S” inside the circle: Survey results from a new candidate (no voting record)
Blank: No voting record or survey answer
For full details on scoring, click here.
| 1) LIFE – Do the candidates support the sanctity of life? | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Senate | |||
| Lauren Nelson | R | Candidate did not respond | |
| Jean M. Hunhoff | R | Candidate has a strong pro-life voting record (Life bills, 2023-24) | |
| Dennis Menke | D | Candidate did not respond | |
| House | ||
| Mike Stevens | R | Candidate has a strong pro-life voting record (Life bills, 2023-24) |
| Julie Auch | R | Candidate has a strong pro-life voting record (Life bills, 2023-24) |
| John R Marquardt | R | Candidate did not respond |
| Sarah Mechtenberg | D | Candidate did not respond |
| Paul Harens | D | Candidate did not respond |
| 2) EDUCATION OPTIONS – Do the candidates support expanded options for education? (Ex: Private school opportunities, homeschooling, etc.) | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Senate | |||
| Lauren Nelson | R | Candidate did not respond | |
| Jean M. Hunhoff | R | Candidate has a 0% record of support for education options (0/5) | |
| Dennis Menke | D | Candidate did not respond | |
| House | ||
| Mike Stevens | R | Candidate has a 25% record of support for education options (2/8) |
| Julie Auch | R | Candidate has a 100% record of support for education options (2/2) |
| John R Marquardt | R | Candidate did not respond |
| Sarah Mechtenberg | D | Candidate did not respond |
| Paul Harens | D | Candidate did not respond |
| 3) MARIJUANA REGULATIONS – Do the candidates support reasonable regulations on marijuana? | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Senate | |||
| Lauren Nelson | R | Candidate did not respond | |
| Jean M. Hunhoff | R | Candidate has a D rating for marijuana regulations (PSDK, 2024) | |
| Dennis Menke | D | Candidate did not respond | |
| House | ||
| Mike Stevens | R | Candidate has a D rating for marijuana regulations (PSDK, 2024) |
| Julie Auch | R | Candidate has a C+ rating for marijuana regulations (PSDK, 2024) |
| John R Marquardt | R | Candidate did not respond |
| Sarah Mechtenberg | D | Candidate did not respond |
| Paul Harens | D | Candidate did not respond |
| 4) AGE VERIFICATION – Do the candidates support legislation to require age-verification for explicit websites? | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Senate | |||
| Lauren Nelson | R | Candidate did not respond | |
| Jean M. Hunhoff | R | Candidate has a voting record of opposition to age-verification legislation (HB1257, 2024) | |
| Dennis Menke | D | Candidate did not respond | |
| House | ||
| Mike Stevens | R | Candidate has a voting record of support for age-verification legislation (HB1257, 2024) |
| Julie Auch | R | Candidate has a voting record of support for age-verification legislation (HB1257, 2024) |
| John R Marquardt | R | Candidate did not respond |
| Sarah Mechtenberg | D | Candidate did not respond |
| Paul Harens | D | Candidate did not respond |
