South Dakota is seen as a Republican stronghold, to the point some statewide races don’t even garner a Democratic challenger. But the that won’t be the case for the 2026 race for US Senate.
Julian Beaudion, a Sioux Falls business leader and advocate, has announced his intention to run for the US Senate in 2026.
He’d be challenging longtime South Dakota Republican Sen. Mike Rounds, assuming he elects to run again.
Beaudion has a background as executive director for The Hub in Sioux Falls, business ownership, and spent 13 years as a state law enforcement officer. He said he’s seeking office to continue his work in community development.
“Folks in these Congressional seats have gained access to people and resources, and they’ve pocketed and benefited themselves from these things, and the people of South Dakota haven’t really seemed to benefit from that," Beaudion said. "We’ve seen a governor get promoted if you will to a cabinet secretary position. One of my biggest reasons I’m running for this is that we have to be able to humanize people again and not really play the role of politics.”
He added bipartisanship is one of his top priorities.
“Without building those relationships, we can’t get anything done for rural development, we can’t get anything done for our farmers, and we can’t get anything done in urban economic environments either," Beaudion said. "First and foremost, has to be establishing relationships and working with people who may believe differently than you.”
That includes building relationships within the state.
“My campaign is not going to build the platform based on what I think will benefit South Dakota, we’re going to be going around the entire state and listening to people, and the people of South Dakota will dictate exactly what my platform will be,” Beaudion said.
The 70-year-old Sen. Rounds has served in the US Senate for the past decade, and previously held the role of governor. He has not formally announced his plans for the 2026 election.