The petitions are circulating for potential candidates who want to be on the 2014 election ballot. The most crowded race is for United States Senate as Tim Johnson will give up his seat at the end of his third term. Five Republicans will try to obtain around 18 hundred valid signatures, One Democrat will need nearly 12 hundred autographs and one Independent needs around 32 hundred. That Independent is 71 year-old Larry Pressler who held a Senate seat 18 years ago and returns to the political scene spurred by the need for change in the political climate in Washington, D.C.

Pressler says he was compelled to action by the current military policy of this country.  “Last fall I heard that we were extending for ten more years in Afghanistan.  It just made me so mad.  We’re spending all that money overseas in these military operations and not here at home.  As an Independent, I would have more power for South Dakota and South Dakota needs help in these next ten years.”

Pressler is adamant that he will only run for one term if elected. That decision will free him to pursue his goals in office without any distractions or pressures.  “Most United States Senators spend half their time raising money for the next election.  Once I got elected I would have the glorious experience of serving one six-year term.  That’s my limitation.

Since he left office, Pressler has spent time in the classroom as a college professor. He worked at various institutions of higher learning such as USD in Vermillion, the University of Sioux Falls and two Native American Community Colleges. Pressler also was a Fulbright Professor teaching American History and American Government overseas.

 

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