Since first being elected in 2010, Republican State Representative Steve Hickey has been an outspoken champion of social conservative causes. He's opposed abortion and same-sex marriage. But he’s also worked with Democrats on abolishing the death penalty and establishing a truth and reconciliation commission to address problems between Native Americans and whites. He’s also been working with openly gay Democratic strategist and Sioux Falls businessman Steve Hildebrand to collect signatures for a 2016 ballot measure capping payday lending interest rates at 36 percent.
Last week, Rep. Hickey announced his resignation from the legislature to begin working toward a Ph.D. in Christian Ethics in the Modern World at the University of Aberdeen in Scotland. He’s studying the work of Lutheran theologian Dietrich Bonhoeffer who opposed Hitler and the Nazis and died in a concentration camp.
Hickey is a pastor at Gate at the Church in Sioux Falls and represents District 9, which includes northwestern Minnehaha County. His resignation is effective on September 1. Governor Daugaard is expected to appoint a replacement this fall.
Representative Hickey joined Dakota Midday and discussed his career in the state legislature.