(Continued from page 19)

• Republicans Chris Nelson and Kristie Fiegen won new terms on the South Dakota Public Utilities Commission, meaning the GOP will continue to hold all three seats on the panel that regulates grain warehouses and natural gas, electric and telephone utilities. Nelson, a 48-year-old former secretary of state, defeated Democrat Nick Nemec, 53, a farmer and former state lawmaker. Fiegen defeated Democratic challenger Matt McGovern, 40, a Sioux Falls lawyer and grandson of former Sen. George McGovern.
• Voters also rejected Gov. Dennis Daugaard's plan to give merit pay to teachers and a proposal to boost the state sales tax from 4 percent to 5 percent, with the extra money split between schools and Medicaid.
•

• SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (AP) -- The GOP did well in South Dakota on Tuesday night even if it failed in its effort to take back the White House. Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney won the state, and other party members held onto the state's lone U.S. House seat and two seats on the state Public Utilities Commission.
• Here are five things to know following the election:
• ___
• VOTERS PUSHED BACK ON THE GOVERNOR'S AGENDA
• Voters rejected Gov. Dennis Daugaard's plan to give merit pay to teachers and a new incentive plan to attract large industrial projects. However, they also rejected a proposal to raise the state sales tax to benefit schools and health care facilities, a plan put forward in response to the governor's budget cuts. Daugaard said South Dakota residents are apparently satisfied with the current education system.
• ___
• NOEM'S VICTORY MARGIN MIRRORS ROMNEY'S
• Mitt Romney earned South Dakota's three electoral votes by garnering nearly 58 percent of the state's vote, a margin that just slightly exceeded the one sending Republican Rep. Kristi Noem back to Washington. Noem survived an aggressive challenge from Democratic challenger Matt Varilek, a former congressional staffer.
• ___
• NEW FACES IN LEGISLATURE, BUT PARTY GAPS REMAIN WIDE
• Although Republicans stymied Democrats' efforts to make significant inroads in the South Dakota Legislature, there will be plenty of new faces in the House and Senate thanks to redistricting and standard legislative turnover. For the past two years, Republicans have outnumbered Democrats 30-5 in the Senate and 50-19 in

(Continued on page 21)