By Democrat Terrence Davis encourages voters to do their research on the candidates and the job when they decide who to choose as South Dakota’s next secretary of state.
Davis visited Aberdeen and the Brown County Fair on Wednesday, Aug. 12.
The 40-year-old from Sioux Falls has a background in law enforcement and was working for East River Legal Services before he decided to hit the campaign trail. The nonprofit group provides free civil legal aid for residents in much of eastern South Dakota.
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Davis is a political newcomer. Heather Baxter of Rapid City is the Republican candidate, and Libertarian Tamara J. Lesnar of Grenville is also running. Baxter is in her first term as a member of the South Dakota House of Representatives. Lesnar ran for U.S. Senate in 2022 and for District 1 state representative in 2024.
Terrence Davis is a Democrat from Sioux Falls who is running for secretary of state. He visited with voters and passersby on Wednesday, Aug. 12 at the Brown County Fair. Aberdeen Insider photo by Scott Waltman.
The general election is Nov. 3.
There’s a notable difference between Davis and Baxter on a topic that has garnered significant discussion in South Dakota in recent years. Baxter has advocated for hand-counting election ballots and is a member of the South Dakota Freedom Caucus, a group that has criticized electronic vote tabulators.
Davis, though, said using vote tabulators with human oversight is a more effective way to count ballots. No system is perfect, he said, but tabulators are more efficient and less prone to human error.
Many people don’t realize that the secretary of state’s office does more than oversee elections and voter rolls, Davis said. It works with entities people deal with their entire lives by handling business and corporate filings, deals with the Unified Commercial Code, issues licenses for notaries and lobbyists, and keeps many public documents and state records.
The Unified Commercial Code is a set of regulations and laws that apply to all commercial transactions, contracts and dealings across the state.
Davis said it’s critical for the secretary of state to protect privacy and constitutional rights.
Davis’ interest in politics piqued while working for Tennessee Highway Patrol
He worked for the Tennessee Highway Patrol and South Dakota Highway Patrol for nearly 10 years combined. Davis said that in Tennessee, he worked on the governor’s detail. During that time, he got an up-close look at politics that piqued his interest. He said he had visited and enjoyed South Dakota before making the move from Tennessee in 2021. South Dakotans are friendly folks, he said.
More recently, Davis said he looked at the various statewide political office options, but decided to run for secretary of state because it’s the best fit given his background, education and personality.
As he’s worked to introduce himself to voters, he said he’s traveled the state, been active on social media and the phones, accepted all the speaking invitations he can and attended events like the fair. He was working at the Brown County Democrats booth on Wednesday. So far, Davis said, feedback has been good, including from Republicans and independents.
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While Republicans handily outnumber Democrats in South Dakota, he said he believes if people do their research on the candidates, they will appreciate his experience.
A native of Peoria, Ill., Davis has an undergraduate degree from Bethel University. He has a master’s degree from Liberty University in public policy, and said he’s taking online classes while working on his doctorate in law and public policy from Liberty.
Davis and his wife Shywhanta, a Sioux Falls teacher, have an 8-year-old son.
