PIERRE, S.D. (South Dakota Searchlight) – The South Dakota Democratic Party will not select a replacement candidate for the U.S. Senate nominee who ended his campaign Tuesday, a party official said.
That statement came Wednesday from state Democratic Party Deputy Director Joe Zweifel in response to South Dakota Searchlight questions. The deadline to select a new nominee is next week.
Julian Beaudion withdrew his candidacy Tuesday with a written statement mentioning a house fire, a personal financial hardship and “intimidating threats to drop out of this race.”
The independent candidate on the ballot, Brian Bengs, responded with a statement saying “nobody has been attacked or threatened.” Bengs has received support from some Democrats who’ve said he has a better chance to beat Republican Sen. Mike Rounds, who is seeking reelection. Zweifel said the state Democratic Party will not endorse Bengs.
Bengs is a former Democrat who was the party’s U.S. Senate nominee in 2022, when he received 26% of the votes in an unsuccessful campaign to unseat Republican Sen. John Thune.
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