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LiberalMind endorses Don Haggar
Election Day is November 3. One of the Public Utilities Commission's three seats — a six-year term regulating the state's utilities — is open for the first time in more than two decades, and the race has a real argument in it: Frank Kloucek, a Democrat with 22 years in the Legislature, wants a one-year moratorium on large data centers; Don Haggar, a former House Speaker Pro Tem, calls that reckless and wants case-by-case review under the new state laws. LiberalMind endorses Don Haggar. Read the research, and see why.
How South Dakota got here
Nominees were chosen at the parties' June state conventions, not in a primary (South Dakota Secretary of State's official 2026 General Election Candidate List; SD News Watch). The printed ballot, confirmed by the Secretary of State's list and the official Hanson County sample ballot: Don Haggar (R) and Frank Kloucek (D).
The seat is open because Republican Commissioner Gary Hanson is not seeking re-election (Rapid City Post / Searchlight). Hanson has served since January 2003; the other two commissioners — Chris Nelson (next election 2028) and Kristie Fiegen (next election 2030) — are not on this ballot (PUC commissioners table, Wikipedia). Republicans have held a PUC majority since 2003; the last Democrat elected to the commission was Steve Kolbeck in 2006 (same source).
Haggar won the GOP convention nomination with 54.9% over Peri Pourier (44.94%) (Rapid City Post convention notes — Rep. Tim Goodwin's notes).
No race-specific finance figures or polling were located — no public competitiveness evidence was located. South Dakota Democrats have not won a statewide election since 2008 (Northern Plains News analysis).
The live issue, stated fairly: Kloucek proposes a one-year moratorium on new large data centers, saying the state's new water/electricity-use laws "lack any teeth" — no penalties for violations. Haggar opposes a pause, calling the new laws "the right foundation… case by case, on their unique merits," and Kloucek's proposal "reckless and pandering" (Rapid City Post / Searchlight). Twenty-three Democratic legislative candidates signed a data-center protection pledge; the 2026 laws Haggar cites passed with bipartisan support (same source).
Don Haggar (Republican) — the case-by-case candidate
Background and service: Former state representative (District 10, Sioux Falls); former House Speaker Pro Tem; former state director of Americans for Prosperity; small-business owner (SD News Watch; Argus Leader ballot guide). Campaign themes: property rights, grid stability, lower energy costs (Argus Leader).
On the race's central question he defends the framework the Legislature just built — with bipartisan support — and would apply it project by project rather than suspend it for a year (Rapid City Post / Searchlight).
Pros: Proven legislative service including House leadership; a small-business and property-rights frame matched to a regulatory office; on data centers he backs the bipartisan laws as written — growth priced case by case, not paused by category.
Cons: He has not served on the commission; utility regulation is a technical docket and his file is legislative and advocacy work, not regulatory adjudication. His AFP state-director past marks him as an advocate by trade — voters who want a regulator at arm's length from advocacy will weigh it.
The flaw, plainly: No flaw proven in service was located. His position on the moratorium is a policy disagreement we resolve in his favor on free-market grounds below — it is not a flaw in either man, and we do not price it as one in Kloucek either.
Frank Kloucek (Democratic) — 22 years in the Legislature, and the moratorium
Background and service: Scotland-area farmer; 22 years in the Legislature — House 1991–2003 and 2011–2013, Senate 2003–2011 (SD News Watch; Argus Leader). Campaign themes: opposing pipeline construction, regulating data-center development, preventing utility tax increases (Argus Leader).
His moratorium argument, steelmanned: the new data-center laws carry no penalties, so a one-year pause is how a state with limited leverage avoids locking in water and power commitments it cannot enforce (Rapid City Post / Searchlight — Kloucek's "lack any teeth" rationale).
No Manchin-test break with his party on our values was located in this research; his signature positions here — the moratorium, pipeline opposition — run with his party's current direction (23 Democratic legislative candidates signed the companion pledge), not against it.
Pros: The deepest legislative record in the race — 22 years across both chambers — and a farmer's direct stake in the water and land questions data centers raise. His "no teeth" critique of the new laws is a specific, checkable claim about penalties, not a slogan.
Cons: The moratorium itself: a blanket one-year pause on a category of investment is the opposite of case-by-case pricing, and the bipartisan laws he calls toothless are the framework his own party's legislators helped pass. No Manchin-test break was located.
The flaw, plainly: A policy flaw, priced as policy — the moratorium species is a candidate's own proposal whose costs (a year of foregone investment decided by category, not merit) are stated on its face. No conduct flaw was located.
OUR CALL
LiberalMind endorses Don Haggar.
Both men are proven legislators; this call turns on the one live question and on doctrine. A six-year utility seat should be filled by the candidate who would price large projects on their merits under laws the Legislature — both parties — just enacted, not by the candidate proposing to suspend that framework for a year. That is the free-market answer, and it is also the regulatory-certainty answer for every other business watching South Dakota. Kloucek's 22 years are credited in full above, his enforcement critique is a fair point for the next legislative session, and no Manchin-test break was located to move him past the doctrine. Endorse Haggar.
For the complete Election 2026 breakdown — every race, claim by claim — see the full coverage on our website.
Vote early. Research your candidates. Choose the best moderates, whatever their party — no extremism from either side. And encourage your friends and family to do the same.
Sources
- South Dakota Secretary of State — official 2026 General Election Candidate List (both filed for the PUC seat); Hanson County official sample ballot — the printed roster
- Rapid City Post / Searchlight — Hanson not seeking re-election; the data-center dispute (Kloucek's one-year moratorium and "lack any teeth" rationale; Haggar's "right foundation… case by case" and "reckless and pandering" responses; the 23-candidate Democratic pledge; the bipartisan passage of the 2026 laws)
- Rapid City Post convention notes — Haggar's convention win, 54.9% over Pourier (44.94%)
- Wikipedia, South Dakota Public Utilities Commission — Hanson's service since January 2003; Nelson (2028) and Fiegen (2030) not on this ballot; Republican majority since 2003; Kolbeck (2006) the last Democrat elected
- SD News Watch; Argus Leader 2026 ballot guide — Haggar's biography and themes (District 10, Speaker Pro Tem, AFP state director, small-business owner; property rights, grid stability, lower energy costs) and Kloucek's (Scotland-area farmer, 22 legislative years by chamber and dates; pipelines, data-center regulation, utility taxes)
- Northern Plains News analysis — South Dakota Democrats have not won statewide since 2008
- Standing check: no pedophile-association material meeting the proven standard was located for any candidate on this ballot
Result pending. No verified call (Associated Press or official) as of November 4, 2026. This page will be updated when the race is called or certified. The original article above is unchanged.
AI-assisted article — but the sources are human, and the facts are very real.