10/25/11
by Perry Miller
South Dakota lawmakers this week approved a plan to redraw the boundaries of the state's
35 legislative voting districts.
The measure passed 50-18 in the House and 31-4 in the Senate on mostly party-line
votes.
For District Seven, the changes are relatively minor. The district is now made up of only
Brookings and a couple of adjacent townships. Volga and Sinai are now part of District
Four, which consists of Codington County outside of Watertown, Grant, Duel, and the rest
of Brookings County.
District Seven Representative Scott Munsterman believes it was a fair and open process.
He says the redistricting committee held 17 meetings in several different locations.
The growth of Brookings means it now stands alone as a legislative district. Munsterman
does not think that will have a major impact on future elections. He says the people of
Brookings are independent thinkers and they will choose a candidate based on experience
and other relevant factors.
He says the changes in District Four may make it a challenge for those incumbent
lawmakers.
Obviously, the population growth in Sioux Falls and Rapid City had to be accounted for
with more legislative seats. Munsterman says Brookings may be in that same situation
down the road.
Munsterman says it will still come down to working with lawmakers from other parts of the
state to get things done.
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