Wellstone Action!

posted by Elana Wolowitz

OCTOBER 27, 2008

Check out the profile of Native American Leadership Program alum and trainer Kevin Killer, who is running for the South Dakota House of Representatives.

Kevin Killer is a Native American Leadership Program alum and trainer, and a rising star in South Dakota politics.  In 2004, Kevin Killer took time off from college in Colorado to work as a field organizer at the Pine Ridge Indian reservation in South Dakota for Senator Tom Daschle's 2004 re-election campaign.  That year, he helped raise voter turnout by 50% on the reservation.   Instead of returning to Colorado, Kevin transferred to the local tribal college to mobilize the students there.  Since then, Kevin has brought Campus Camp Wellstone to the Oglala Lakota colleges, and voter registration among Oglala Lakota tribal college students has increased 15%.  His impressive track record has won him a senior fellowship with the leadership program Young People For.  As part of this fellowship, he is helping to launch Wellstone Action's National Native American Leadership Program.  Additonally, Killer has served as Student Senate President for Oglala Lakota College and Wakpamni District Treasurer.

Now 29, Kevin is taking the leap into public office as the Democratic candidate for the District 27 seat in the South Dakota House.  His platform includes working toward a living wage, improving education, and bringing green jobs to South Dakota by tapping into its remarkable wind power.  His candidacy has won endorsements from the Indigenous Democratic Network, Equality South Dakota, and People for the American Way.  Given his demonstrated passion for his community and impressive leadership record, his potential as a force for change in South Dakota politics is huge.