Remember Bruce Halverson? He decided to run for mayor in 2006 when incumbent Dave Munson dropped out of the race because he violated city charter by approving a 100% cost overrun on Phillips to the Falls without council approval. Than when the city council chickened out and didn’t file charges against Munson, he decided to run for re-election. The Halverson camp WAS NOT happy about the switcheroo.
So when the Halversons left about a decade ago, it was no surprise after being burned.
Bruce’s wife, Nancy now will run the Levitt. Nancy Halverson had a great reputation before leaving Sioux Falls in support of the local arts scene. I think she will do a great job, just try to keep Bruce out of local politics, it has gotten much worse over the past 10 years.
2006 was a change mayoral race. Someone should do a oral history project on it with its personalities. Somehow a great defender of Mayor Munson became a Halverson operative in that race. Then an incumbent mayor who only received, what 28% in the primary, went on to win the general. How does that happen? Usually when an incumbent is that weak in the first round it means toast in the second round. Then a couple years later, Munson can’t even win a Republican primary fight after having had a perfect electoral history. (But then again by then, Janklow was dead… Perhaps, that is the answer. 😉 )….. and also, a beard and the Augie Presidency might have been too much for a “Town versus Gown” struggle….
“strange!” Not “change.” Although, it might have been time for “change” in 2006…
Insider paternalism. Better candidates never get a chance. Disgusting. Sioux Falls, a corrupt thing going.