Stephanie for South Dakota

About Stephanie

Stephanie Herseth Sandlin is South Dakota's at-large Member of Congress. Stephanie grew up on her family's farm and ranch near Houghton, in the northeast part of the state. She graduated from Groton High School and attended Georgetown University in Washington, D.C. where she graduated summa cum laude and Phi Beta Kappa with a B.A. in Government. Stephanie received her law degree from the Georgetown University Law Center, was a senior editor of the law review, and served on the faculty in 1997.

Stephanie is a member of the South Dakota Bar. She has worked on energy and telecommunications issues for the South Dakota Public Utilities Commission in Pierre and organized commission meetings with tribal leaders regarding utility regulation on the Rosebud and Pine Ridge Indian reservations. She also worked with the Legal Counsel for the Elderly, providing assistance to those unable to afford legal services on issues relating to housing, Medicare and Social Security. And through The Fund for American Studies, Stephanie traveled to the Czech Republic to teach classes on the American system of government to central and eastern European and Asian college students.

Stephanie worked with U.S. District Court Judge Charles B. Kornmann in Pierre and Aberdeen. She also served as a law clerk to the Honorable Diana Gribbon Motz on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit, and has been in the private practice of law assisting clients in litigation matters throughout the United States. Stephanie currently lives in Brookings and is a member of Brookings Rotary.

In 2003, she served as the executive director of the South Dakota Farmers Union Foundation, working to expand the base of financial support for cooperative education youth programs as part of the Foundation's mission to support programs and advance efforts that further economic prosperity and cultural vitality in rural South Dakota. During that year, Stephanie also taught courses on campaigns and politics at Augustana College in Sioux Falls and South Dakota State University in Brookings.

Former Governor Ralph Herseth was Stephanie's grandfather and Lorna B. Herseth, South Dakota's Secretary of State, was her grandmother. Her father, Lars, served in the state legislature for 20 years and was the Democratic nominee for Governor in 1986.

Paid for by Stephanie Herseth Sandlin for South Dakota