Activist wants to be first Native American to serve on Sioux Falls City Council

Trevor J. Mitchell, Sioux Falls Argus Leader
·2 min read

A Sioux Falls activist says she wants to be the first Native American to serve on the Sioux Falls City Council.

Allison Renville said in a Tuesday Facebook post that she has filed to run for the council's At-Large C seat, where Councilor Alex Jensen will not be seeking re-election in the city's April 9 election.

Allison Renville
Allison Renville

Renville said in a news release her "Wotakuye" platform "prioritizes families, workers, community health, veterans, justice and public safety, transient and houseless folks and keeping the Sioux Valley thriving." Her run for the seat is motivated by "the recent need for community leadership in response to the increase of violence in Sioux Falls," she said.

Renville didn't specify what increases in violence she was concerned about. The city's most recent crime statistics briefing showed a slight rise in aggravated and simple assaults, though only two homicides occurred in 2023 and other crimes such as rape, robbery and burglary also saw slight decreases.

More: Community organizer files to run for Sioux Falls City Council seat being vacated by Jensen

It won't be her first election. Renville ran for the South Dakota State Senate's District 1 seat in 2018, coming in third in the Democratic primary behind Susan Wismer and Thomas Bisek.

Renville is also a board member of the Justice through Empowerment Network, a South Dakota-based abortion fund, and serves as chair and treasurer of a PAC called Dakotas For America, though state filings show no changes in its finances since 2018.

“My candidacy is about no longer tolerating the actions of the current status quo and reinstilling the South Dakota Values this city was built on," Renville wrote in the release. "My first goal is to bring more attention to the need for diverse realistic representation and with voters help become the First Native American to serve on Sioux Falls city council.”

More: Alex Jensen won't seek 2nd term on Sioux Falls city council, endorses former state lawmaker

Renville is the third person to announce their candidacy for the At-Large C seat, following community organizer Jordan Deffenbaugh and former state lawmaker Richard Thomason, the latter of whom has been endorsed by Jensen.

This article originally appeared on Sioux Falls Argus Leader: Activist Allison Renville to run for Sioux Falls City Council seat