Noem, Kristi, 1971-

<p>In 2010, following a surprising victory in the Republican primary, Kristi Noem defeated a formidable Democratic incumbent to win election to the U.S. House of Representatives from South Dakota. With seats on the powerful Ways and Means and Agricultural Committees, Noem helped shape policy and tax laws governing America’s agricultural sector and worked to help pass a major tax cut in 2017.</p>

<p>Kristi Noem was born Kristi Lynn Arnold on November 30, 1971, in Watertown, South Dakota, to Ron and Corrine Arnold. Her parents were farmers and ranchers. Noem attended Northern State University in Aberdeen, South Dakota, and later took courses at South Dakota State University in Brookings and the Watertown campus of Mount Marty College. In 1994 her father died in an accident on the family farm in Hazel, South Dakota, and Noem postponed her studies to manage the business with her brother. They raised cattle, corn, soybeans, and wheat, and eventually opened a hunting lodge and restaurant. In 2011 Noem finished her bachelor’s degree in political science from South Dakota State University. Noem and her husband, Bryon Noem, married in 1992 and have three children.</p>

<p>Noem’s first experience in public office was as an appointed member of South Dakota’s Farm Service Agency committee, which implements programs and loans established by the U.S. Department of Agriculture. And in May 2000, she appeared before the House Committee on Agriculture to testify about USDA programs affecting family farms and ranches in South Dakota.</p>

<p>Kristi Lynn Noem (née Arnold; November 30, 1971) is an American politician serving as the 33rd and current governor of South Dakota since January 5, 2019. A member of the Republican Party, she was the U.S. Representative for South Dakota's at-large congressional district from 2011 to 2019 and a member of the South Dakota House of Representatives for the 6th district from 2007 to 2011. Noem was elected governor in 2018 and is South Dakota's first female governor.</p>

<p>During the COVID-19 pandemic in South Dakota, Noem took a hands-off approach. In October 2020, South Dakota reported the country's second-highest number of new COVID cases per capita and hospitals began to prioritize treatment of severe COVID cases over milder ones. Noem did not implement face mask mandates, but left communities the flexibility to do so. While considering the health advice of the medical community, she was vocal about her doubts of the efficacy of mask-wearing in children due to studies citing the decreased risk from exposure to the virus, and encouraged parents to consider keeping their children in schools during the pandemic. To stimulate the state's economy during the economic downturn, she encouraged tourism to the state's vast open areas.</p>

<p>In 2021, Noem directed South Dakota law enforcement to challenge a voter-approved constitutional amendment that legalized recreational marijuana for adults subject to limitations.</p>

<p>Governor Kristi Noem is a wife, a mother, and a lifelong rancher, farmer and small business owner.</p>

<p>In 2010, after serving in the South Dakota legislature for several years, Noem was elected to serve as South Dakota's lone member of the U.S. House of Representatives. During her time in Congress, in addition to many other successes, Governor Noem helped pass the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, which put $2,400 back in the pockets of the average South Dakota family.</p>

<p>In 2018, with the platform of protecting South Dakotans against tax increases, government growth, federal intrusion, and government secrecy, she was elected as South Dakota's first-ever female Governor.</p>

<p>As Governor, Noem has respected the rights of her people by trusting them to exercise their personal responsibility to make the best decisions for themselves, their loved-ones, and – in turn – their communities. This approach has been most evident in her response to the COVID-19 pandemic: Governor Noem never ordered a single business or church to close and never issued a statewide shelter-in-place order.</p>