Some District 30 voters speak out against Frye-Mueller’s suspension

RAPID CITY, S.D. (KEVN) - In light of state Senator Julie Frye-Mueller’s suspension, some voters in South Dakota’s Senate District 30 feel their voices have been denied the representation they voted for.

What makes up Custer, Fall River, and parts of Pennington County is the area considered South Dakota’s 30th district. With the suspension of the district’s only legislative senator, some people feel that their voices are being suppressed.

“25,000 people have no voice, that is an issue, and we want our voice back. We selected Julie because Julie shares a commonality with her district people,” said Custer County Republicans and Central Committee member Gail Ertel.

Like at the federal level, the state also has a government body that passes laws that affect the state and how it is run. They also give each district a voice, and that voice helps decide the laws of the state. With the suspension of Frye-Muller, some people in District 30 feel they lost their voice in the state legislature.

“We selected her. We legally elected her, and we don’t want her illegally removed,” said Ertel.

Ertel added that the Custer County Republican and Central Committee are trying to set up a caravan to Pierre Tuesday morning to protest the decision to suspend Frye-Mueller.

The first meeting of the Select Committee on Discipline and Expulsion regarding Frye-Mueller was held Monday afternoon. Details on the case regarding Frye-Mueller are still developing and the committee plans to meet again Tuesday at 5 p.m.