From affordable housing to clean water, council candidates lay out visions for Mni Luzahan

RAPID CITY – For the first time in more than twenty years – and only the third time since 1995 – every Rapid City Council ward will see a contested race in the June 2 municipal election.

Each of Rapid City’s five wards has two council representatives. One position in each ward is up for election this year, and four incumbents are seeking another three-year term. City Council President and Ward 5 Alderman Rod Pettigrew is not running again, opening that seat for a new representative. In all, eleven candidates have filed to run, two of whom are Native American.

According to a press release from Rapid City Public Information Officer Darrell Shoemaker, candidate petitions for the three-year council positions have been submitted and validated by the city finance office. Candidates must receive a majority of votes in the June 2 election to win. In Ward 4, where three candidates are running, a runoff election on June 23 may be required if no one receives more than 50 percent of the vote.

Murray Lee from NDN Collective is challenging Ward One incumbent Josh Biberdorf. Christopher Vanderhoof is challenging incumbent Lindsey Seachris’ seat in Ward Two. Ward Three incumbent Keven Maher is being challenged by Andrea (ANNDREA) Schaefer. John Roberts, the incumbent for Ward Four, being challenged by Valeriah Big Eagle and Ardin Jay Cychosz (SEE-KOSH). Laura Armstrong and Pat Roseland, both former Council members, are running for Pettigrew’s seat in Ward Five.

Some of the council candidates appeared at a recent Pennington County Democrats candidate forum at The Dahl in Rapid City, where party organizers emphasized candidate support, petition drives, and fundraising to help local campaigns get on the ballot and meet their goals.

The evening highlighted the growing presence of Native candidates and women seeking local office. Big Eagle who is the director of He Sapa Initiatives at NDN Collective and Yankton Sioux and Crow Creek Sioux, spoke about working with youth, confronting high Native student dropout rates, and coaching basketball as a way to keep young people in school and “off the streets.” She tied her city council bid to long-running work on affordable housing, clean water, and opposition to mining projects that threaten the Black Hills and local water supplies

Big Eagle told supporters that she wants to bring a “fresh voice” and “new perspective” to a ward that has had the same council representative for about twelve years, and she framed her campaign around affordable housing, racism, education, and clean water. She described the barriers she faced finding housing even as a university employee — including testing how landlords responded differently when she used her Lakota surname versus her maiden name— and argued that Rapid City needs to be willing to have “hard conversations” about racism and North Rapid.

Big Eagle also emphasized North Rapid’s need for green space, trees, and basic beautification, calling the area “our big reservation” within the city and pointing to plans for a new Indian Center on North Haines as an example of the kind of investment she wants to see. “We deserve to live too and thrive,” she said, promising to be a “good relative” on the council who listens to the community and isn’t afraid to challenge the status quo.

Lee, who is Sisseton Wahpeton, grew up in Rapid City and graduated from Black Hills State University. Lee spent seven years working in community outreach for United Way before moving into fundraising.

He wasn’t able to attend the forum due to illness, but his promotional material said his focus is affordable housing, thoughtful growth that protects what makes Rapid City special, and is committed to bringing people together “to get things done. I believe local leadership should focus on what improves everyday life.”

Laura Armstrong is running in Ward 5. She had served as that ward’s representative from 2017 to 2023. She said it was a pleasure to serve. “Out of those six years, I served in leadership positions, twice as council president.” She said it isn’t always fun exciting to run, or even exciting to serve, “but it’s something we have to do if we care about our community.”

She noted the issues that other candidates were highlighting – importance of family, public transportation, and affordable housing. She said everyone has their priorities but emphasized the importance of working together. “I am going to work with the other nine members, as well as the mayor, to make Rapid City a better place.”

Armstrong expressed her admiration for the other candidates saying, “these are the types of people that we need on City Council.”

Small business owner Andrea Schaefer explained she was looking forward to doing more for the city she loves, after career and family changes have left her more time. She owned Barefoot Dance Studio which she sold several years ago and now owns Blissed Alternative, a boutique clothing store downtown. “My main goal, once I get a seat at the table, is thoughtful growth.” She said growth is essential, but city leaders need to focus on infrastructure. When she saw how the community coalesced against the Libertyland TIF district, with nearly seventy percent of voters in the special election voting no, she knew she could find common ground. She said she was frustrated when she heard the project being described as a new downtown. “I was a little annoyed because I’d like to see them put some energy into the downtown we already have.”

The deadline to register to vote is May 18. Early voting begin April 17 and continues until 4 p.m. Monday, June 1. Voter registration and absentee voting is coordinated through the Pennington County Auditor’s Office.

(Contact Marnie Cook at cookm8715@gmail.com)

The post From affordable housing to clean water, council candidates lay out visions for Mni Luzahan first appeared on Native Sun News Today.

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