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Bret Swanson

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This page was current at the end of the individual's last campaign covered by Ballotpedia. Please contact us with any updates.
Bret Swanson
Image of Bret Swanson
Elections and appointments
Last election

November 5, 2024

Education

High school

Arvada West High School

Bachelor's

Colorado State University, 1983

Graduate

University of South Dakota, 2003

Personal
Birthplace
Denver, Colo.
Profession
Educator
Contact

Bret Swanson (Democratic Party) ran for election to the South Dakota State Senate to represent District 30. He lost in the general election on November 5, 2024.

Biography

Bret Swanson was born in Denver, Colorado. He earned a bachelor's degree from Colorado State University in 1983 and a graduate degree from the University of South Dakota in 2003. Swanson's career experience includes working as a educator.[1]

Elections

2024

See also: South Dakota State Senate elections, 2024

General election

General election for South Dakota State Senate District 30

Amber Hulse defeated Bret Swanson in the general election for South Dakota State Senate District 30 on November 5, 2024.

Candidate
%
Votes
Image of Amber Hulse
Amber Hulse (R) Candidate Connection
 
74.4
 
11,216
Image of Bret Swanson
Bret Swanson (D)
 
25.6
 
3,868

Total votes: 15,084
Candidate Connection = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Democratic primary election

The Democratic primary election was canceled. Bret Swanson advanced from the Democratic primary for South Dakota State Senate District 30.

Republican primary election

Republican primary for South Dakota State Senate District 30

Amber Hulse defeated incumbent Julie Frye-Mueller and Forrest Foster in the Republican primary for South Dakota State Senate District 30 on June 4, 2024.

Candidate
%
Votes
Image of Amber Hulse
Amber Hulse Candidate Connection
 
45.9
 
2,216
Image of Julie Frye-Mueller
Julie Frye-Mueller
 
42.5
 
2,048
Image of Forrest Foster
Forrest Foster Candidate Connection
 
11.6
 
560

Total votes: 4,824
Candidate Connection = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Endorsements

Ballotpedia did not identify endorsements for Swanson in this election.

Pledges

Swanson signed the following pledges.

  • U.S. Term Limits

2022

See also: South Dakota House of Representatives elections, 2022

General election

General election for South Dakota House of Representatives District 30 (2 seats)

Incumbent Trish Ladner and Dennis Krull defeated Bret Swanson in the general election for South Dakota House of Representatives District 30 on November 8, 2022.

Candidate
%
Votes
Image of Trish Ladner
Trish Ladner (R)
 
43.4
 
8,309
Image of Dennis Krull
Dennis Krull (R) Candidate Connection
 
39.9
 
7,638
Image of Bret Swanson
Bret Swanson (D) Candidate Connection
 
16.8
 
3,217

Total votes: 19,164
Candidate Connection = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.

Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Democratic primary election

The Democratic primary election was canceled. Bret Swanson advanced from the Democratic primary for South Dakota House of Representatives District 30.

Republican primary election

Republican primary for South Dakota House of Representatives District 30 (2 seats)

Dennis Krull and incumbent Trish Ladner defeated Patrick Baumann, Lisa Gennaro, and Gerold Herrick in the Republican primary for South Dakota House of Representatives District 30 on June 7, 2022.

Candidate
%
Votes
Image of Dennis Krull
Dennis Krull Candidate Connection
 
29.2
 
2,536
Image of Trish Ladner
Trish Ladner
 
24.6
 
2,133
Patrick Baumann
 
23.5
 
2,040
Image of Lisa Gennaro
Lisa Gennaro Candidate Connection
 
15.1
 
1,309
Gerold Herrick
 
7.6
 
660

Total votes: 8,678
Candidate Connection = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.

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Campaign themes

2024

Ballotpedia survey responses

See also: Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection

Bret Swanson did not complete Ballotpedia's 2024 Candidate Connection survey.

2022

Candidate Connection

Bret Swanson completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2022. The survey questions appear in bold and are followed by Swanson's responses. Candidates are asked three required questions for this survey, but they may answer additional optional questions as well.

Expand all | Collapse all

I'm an educator. I have taught in elementary and middle schools. For the last twenty years, I have worked in a variety of colleges and universities. For five years, I served on the local school board. While my parents were raised in western South Dakota, I grew up in Denver. In 1991, I accepted a teaching position in Rapid City. Before that, I taught in Japan. I have also been lucky enough to teach in Egypt and Saudi Arabia. My wife and I have four grown children and eleven grandchildren. Unhappy with South Dakota's one-party rule and the inherent corruption it fosters, I decided to run for office.
  • To expose the ruling party's corruption, to improve the state's reputation, to be honest and transparent.
  • To enhance worker rights: raise minimum wage to $20/hr, enforce due process protection (no more right to work).
  • To address tax equity.
As an educator, I worry about how education has been overly politicized. Teachers want and deserve autonomy. The state and other outside organizations are trying encroach and influence what happens in the classroom.
I admire Ralph Nader because of his courage, intelligence, and selflessness; Bob Dylan for being Bob, being constantly creative, and for not really caring what other people think; and Muhammed Ali for his bravery and creativity.
My favorite book is Henderson the Rain King by Saul Bellow. My favorite album is Dylan's Blood on the Tracks. My favorite poem is Traveling through the Dark by William Stafford. My favorite films are Godfathers I and II, and Tombstone.
To honestly work to improve the lives of his/her constituents.
I worked behind the counter at a Baskin and Robbins for one one summer.
Henderson the Rain King--funny, surprising, great ending.
I quit drinking in 1991, smartest move I ever made.
One of my volunteers needs a walker to move around. He cannot drive. When I asked him what issues are important to him, he said that he wished there were more employment opportunities for people like him.

Note: Ballotpedia reserves the right to edit Candidate Connection survey responses. Any edits made by Ballotpedia will be clearly marked with [brackets] for the public. If the candidate disagrees with an edit, he or she may request the full removal of the survey response from Ballotpedia.org. Ballotpedia does not edit or correct typographical errors unless the candidate's campaign requests it.


Campaign finance summary


Note: The finance data shown here comes from the disclosures required of candidates and parties. Depending on the election or state, this may represent only a portion of all the funds spent on their behalf. Satellite spending groups may or may not have expended funds related to the candidate or politician on whose page you are reading this disclaimer. Campaign finance data from elections may be incomplete. For elections to federal offices, complete data can be found at the FEC website. Click here for more on federal campaign finance law and here for more on state campaign finance law.


Bret Swanson campaign contribution history
YearOfficeStatusContributionsExpenditures
2024* South Dakota State Senate District 30Lost general$30,721 $0
2022South Dakota House of Representatives District 30Lost general$8,700 $0
Grand total$39,421 $0
Sources: OpenSecretsFederal Elections Commission ***This product uses the openFEC API but is not endorsed or certified by the Federal Election Commission (FEC).
* Data from this year may not be complete

See also


External links

Footnotes

  1. Information submitted to Ballotpedia through the Candidate Connection survey on June 8, 2022


Current members of the South Dakota State Senate
Leadership
Majority Leader:Jim Mehlhaff
Minority Leader:Liz Larson
Senators
District 1
District 2
District 3
District 4
District 5
District 6
District 7
Tim Reed (R)
District 8
District 9
Joy Hohn (R)
District 10
District 11
District 12
Arch Beal (R)
District 13
District 14
District 15
District 16
District 17
District 18
District 19
District 20
District 21
District 22
District 23
District 24
District 25
District 26
District 27
District 28
J. Marty (R)
District 29
District 30
District 31
District 32
District 33
District 34
District 35
Republican Party (32)
Democratic Party (3)