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Dakotans for Health 2024 Logo

Dakotans for Health is a grassroots organization focused on healthcare and protecting the democratic process. The organization was instrumental in the successful 2022 campaign to expand Medicaid coverage to 52,000 low-income South Dakotans.[1] The group was founded by former 2014 South Dakota Democratic Senate Candidate Rick Weiland and his son Adam Weiland. According to the group's website, Dakotans for Health is dedicated to ensuring that all South Dakotans have access to the care they need—regardless of who they are, what they look like, or how much money they have.[2]

Dakotans for Health volunteers collect signatures to restore abortion rights in South Dakota

2024 Abortion Rights Campaign

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Dakotans for Health is leading the campaign in 2024 to restore Roe v. Wade rights in the state.[3] The initiated constitutional amendment would end South Dakota’s abortion ban, restoring reproductive rights and allowing voters to decide the future of healthcare freedom in the state.[4] The measure, known as the “Freedom Amendment G,” was officially certified by the South Dakota Secretary of State on May 16 and will appear on the November 2024 ballot.[5]

Opposition from Anti-Abortion Forces

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Dakotans for Health faced significant resistance during their campaign to qualify Amendment G for the 2024 ballot. The “Decline to Sign” campaign, led by anti-abortion politicians State Representative John Hansen and Leslee Unruh, targeted Dakotans for Health and its petition circulators during the signature-collecting phase.[6]

Dakotans for Health v. Leah Anderson

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The group has filed and won two federal lawsuits against local governments trying to prevent them from collecting signatures at key petitioning locations. One case involved Minnehaha County Auditor Leah Anderson, who attempted to stop the group from gathering signatures at the Minnehaha County Administration building in Sioux Falls by setting up unconstitutional "freed speech zones". According to ProPublica, Anderson previously served as director for the Alpha Center, an anti abortion non-profit located in Sioux Falls, SD. [7] Dakotans for Health successfully challenged the decision, allowing them to continue their petition drive at the location. [8]

Dakotans for Health v. Lawrence County Commission

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Dakotans for Health filed a lawsuit against the Lawrence County Commission, challenging their attempts to restrict petition circulators on county campuses. The grassroots organization argued that the restrictions violated their constitutional rights. Dakotans for Health won the lawsuit in federal court.[9]

Signature Withdrawal Law and Tactics Against Abortion Rights Petition

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In March 2024, State Representative Jon Hansen, who also serves as Vice President of South Dakota Right to Life, sponsored and passed a signature withdrawal law. This law was largely believed to have been designed to target the abortion rights ballot measure.[10]

Petition Integrity Committee’s Harassment and Deceptive Tactics

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Shortly after Dakotans for Health filed their ballot measure with the Secretary of State, another group call the Petition Integrity Committee, formed by State Representative Jon Hansen, was criticized by the South Dakota Secretary of State for making calls to signers of the abortion rights amendment. The group misrepresented themselves as agents of the Secretary of State’s office in an attempt to convince signers to withdraw their signatures.[11] According to the Dakotans for Health website, there were no signatures withdrawn from the Secretary of State's random sample.[12]

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More recently, Jon Hansen and Leslee Unruh’s "Life Defense Fund" filed a lawsuit to remove Dakotans for Health’s abortion rights amendment from the 2024 ballot. However, they were unsuccessful, and the measure is set to appear before South Dakota voters in November 2024. Despite this setback, Hansen and Unruh continue to pursue legal action in an effort to prevent the amendment from being voted on.[13]

2024 Campaign to Repeal South Dakota's State Tax on Food

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Dakotans for Health is also sponsoring an initiated measure to repeal South Dakota’s state tax on food. Certified on May 1, 2024.[14] This measure would eliminate the state’s tax on groceries, providing financial relief to families across the state.[15] The South Dakota AFL-CIO is co-sponsoring the measure.[16] If passed, IM28 would repeal the state's share of the tax on the food South Dakotans eat. According to the South Dakota Legislative Research Council and Attorney General, municipalities would still get to continue to collect taxes of food.[17]

  1. ^ Laura Santhanam (2022-11-09). "South Dakota passed Medicaid expansion. What's next?". PBS News Hour. Retrieved 2024-10-02.
  2. ^ "Dakotans for Health". Dakotans for Health. Retrieved 2024-10-02.
  3. ^ Lee Strubinger (2022-11-18). "Abortion rights backers optimistic about petition drive following mid-term elections". South Dakota Public Broadcasting. Retrieved 2024-10-02.
  4. ^ Stu Whitney (2023-06-08). "Is proposed abortion amendment 'far more extreme' than Roe v. Wade?". South Dakota News Watch. Retrieved 2024-10-02.
  5. ^ "Freedom Amendment Ballot Measure to Restore Roe v Wade Rights Certified for 2024 Ballot with 85% Validity by South Dakota Secretary of State". Dakotans for Health. 2024-05-16. Retrieved 2024-10-02.
  6. ^ Bob Mercer (January 29, 2023). "Hour of Reflection at SD Capitol marks Roe's fall". Capitol News Bureau. Retrieved October 2, 2024.
  7. ^ "Alpha Center". ProPublica. Retrieved 2024-10-02.
  8. ^ Stu Whitney (2023-11-22). "Grassroots organization Dakotans for Health reaches settlement with Minnehaha County". Argus Leader. Retrieved 2024-10-02.
  9. ^ Joshua Haiar (2024-07-11). "Counties hit with $74,000 in plaintiffs' attorney fees for trying to restrict petition circulators". South Dakota Searchlight. Retrieved 2024-10-02.
  10. ^ Jack Dura (2024-03-15). "A new front opens over South Dakota ballot initiatives: withdrawing signatures from petitions". Associated Press. Retrieved 2024-10-02.
  11. ^ Makenzie Huber (2024-05-14). "Anti-abortion group is behind calls labeled a 'scam' by state election official". South Dakota Searchlight. Retrieved 2024-10-02.
  12. ^ "Life Defense Fund Misfire: Effort to Deny South Dakotans Right to Vote on Reproductive Freedom". Dakotans for Health. 2024-06-18. Retrieved 2024-10-02.
  13. ^ Dominik Dausch (2024-08-13). "Opponents to SD abortion measure argue Secretary of State could make votes 'null and void'". Sioux Falls Argus Leader. Retrieved 2024-10-02.
  14. ^ Searchlight Staff (2024-05-13). "Grocery tax repeal validated for the ballot". South Dakota Searchlight. Retrieved 2024-10-02.
  15. ^ Stu Whitney (2024-09-23). "Q&A: South Dakota's food tax repeal measure". South Dakota News Watch. Retrieved 2024-10-02.
  16. ^ "IM 28: Repeal the Tax on the Food We Eat". Dakotans for Health. Retrieved 2024-10-02.
  17. ^ Rick Weiland (2024-09-13). "IM 28: Real Tax Relief for South Dakota Families". Dakotans for Health. Retrieved 2024-10-02.
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