Noem offers advice at 2022 Boys State Governor's Banquet

Jason Lenning had to change his strategy at the last minute.

Lenning was elected governor at the 2022 South Dakota American Legion Boys State, a 5-day government camp where high school juniors can learn more about government.

Boys State attendees have been at Northern State University this week. Lenning's election as governor was announced Thursday at the governor's banquet in the Kessler's Champions Club at the Barnett Center.

Students are divided into two "political parties:" Nationalists and Federalists. They can choose to run for governor. They then engage in debates, a primary election and give speeches.

Lenning, who goes to Sioux Falls Christian School, said he chose to run for governor because of to the competition.

"I like the leadership aspect and how I got to practice my leadership. And at the end of the day, I'm a really competitive person," said Lenning.

Lenning also plans to join the Naval Academy when he graduates, and said the governor position might help his name stand out more because of the leadership expereience.

One of the first things needed in his race for governor was 15 signatures. After only getting seven when he tried to get them by himself, Lenning realized he needed to switch strategies.

Lenning suggested to the other students running for governor in his county that they join forces by holding another election.

"It was kind of a primary before the primary election," said Lenning. And after putting their signatures together, Lenning had enough to officially run for governor.

For the debate portion of the race, students discussed current political topics, such as abortion and the Keystone XL Pipeline. Lenning said the debates exposed him to state issues as opposed to national issues. The debates also forced students to think critically.

"You can't just say, 'I want to get this Keystone Pipeline running.' And it's like, 'well, how are we going to pay for that? Are we going to add additional taxes?' said Lenning.

Noem encourages students to listen to other perspectives

Lenning sat next to South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem during the dinner. They talked about "Top Gun: Maverick," as well as other topics like abortion, said Lenning. Noem also talked to Lenning about the importance of people getting involved in their communities.

During her speech after the dinner, Noem emphasized that the most important thing is relationships.

"This world still moves on relationships. People that you're sitting next to might be your next business partners," said Noem in her speech.

Noem also brought up the heated debates between students earlier in the day, and spoke about the need for people to listen to other perspectives. Everyone's perspective is important, said Noem.

Noem encouraged the students to have "enabling attitudes," as opposed to "disabling attitudes." People have the ability to decide how their day is going to go, and Noem said students should look at stressful situations as an opportunity to better.

People also have the ability to decide whether or not they are going to get offended by something, said Noem, and urged students not to carry that burden with them.

"We've got people in our lives that have offended us, maybe. Maybe it's because of politics or government or something else and we quit talking to each other. And that's not doing this country any service or justice," said Noem.

Noem also encouraged students to make sure that they have conversations with people they don't agree with, and to always make sure that people feel heard.

"Maybe people try to portray us as divided. I disagree," said Noem.

After her speech, Noem took questions, with a range of topics that included recreational cannabis and the state's prison system.

While Noem said she does not personally support the legalization of recreational cannabis, it will be enacted into law if it passes on the ballot. Noem said her job is to listen to what the people of the state want.

Initiated Measure 27, which will ask voters whether they support the use of marijuana for personal use, is expected to appear on ballots in November.

One student asked Noem if she thinks the prison system accommodates prisoners in terms of both rehabilitation and living conditions. Noem said the state's prison systems do not accommodate people well enough, and that $600 to $800 million needs to be invested, with a focus on job training, and counseling for mental health and addiction.

When asked about the hardest decision she has had to make as governor, Noem talked about decisions she had to make during the COVID-19 pandemic. Noem said although she was told by health experts at the beginning of the pandemic that 250,000 to 300,000 people in the state would die, she decided against enacting any stay-at-home orders. Noem said she questioned whether the governor has the authority to tell people to stay at home. After her team determined the governor does not have that authority according to the state's Constitution, she decided against it.

The decision was tough because South Dakota was the only state not to enact a stay-at-home order, said Noem. Instead, she decided to trust that people would make the best decisions for the families, she said.

To those going into politics, Noem encouraged students to truly understand and not overstep the authority of their jobs.

This article originally appeared on Aberdeen News: Noem speaks at 2022 Boys State Governor's Banquet