Thank You For Your Support

I would like to thank all my volunteers and those who voted for me! Your support and time is greatly appreciated. I wish the best of luck to you all. ~Scott

Where Do I Go to Vote for Scott?

Good question! Click here to find out — it’s easy!

1. Go to Secretary of State Chris Nelson’s Voter Information Portal.
2. Type in your first name, last name and date of birth. (Don’t worry: you’re not giving Secretary Nelson any information he doesn’t already have.)
3. Hit the “Search” button.
4. Presto! Up pops a page with your voter registration information, your polling place and precinct, and a link to a sample ballot for your jurisdiction. And if you have questions, the page also gives the phone number for your county auditor.

So find your polling place, then go there, and vote for Scott!

Scott Wants South Dakota to Work for Working Families

Scott knows that good jobs are the cornerstone of a good economy and a good quality of life. That’s why he’s committed to creating high-paying jobs in South Dakota and providing workers with the protection they need.

As your State Senator, Scott will…

• Ease burdensome regulations and taxes on small businesses and farmers, so we can create more good-paying jobs and keep our economy growing.
• Propose a bold investment into the research and development of more renewable energies, like wind, solar and bio-fuels, so we can make South Dakota the nation’s leader in renewable energy production, create jobs and lessen our dependence on foreign oil.
• Create affordable health care coverage solutions by working with health care companies and South Dakota’s small businesses.

Scott Parsley Believes That South Dakota Kids Count

As the husband of a high school teacher, Scott knows firsthand the importance of a good education. That’s why Scott will work to…

• Improve teachers’ pay, so we don’t lose our best teachers to surrounding states.
• Increase funding to ensure strong pre-school through higher education programs.
• Get more parents included in their children’s education.

Scott is endorsed by the South Dakota Education Association.

Parsley Talks Power with Public… and Rep. Herseth Sandlin!

Here’s Scott Parsley with his fellow District 8 Democratic Legislative candidates Mitch Fargen and Gerry Lange, as well as own Congresswoman Stephanie Herseth Sandlin. They got together yesterday afternoon (Thurs., Oct. 16) to discuss renewable energy at a forum at the Madison Public Library. Herseth Sandlin spoke about her work at the federal level to promote ethanol and other renewable fuels, while Parsley, Fargen, and Lange discussed what we need to do at the state level to make South Dakota a leader in ethanol and wind production.

Scott focused on wind power. In his opening remarks, you can hear him discuss the “incentives gap” that makes wind power significantly less profitable for start-ups in South Dakota than in neighboring states.

As you can see, Scott isn’t just talking about the problem; he’s doing something about it. Scott’s already helped create legislation that has improved incentives for wind, and he’s ready to work as a State Senator to do more to “jump start” the wind energy industry in South Dakota. That forward thinking is exactly what South Dakota and the entire country need to build a future of clean, reliable energy.

Video: Scott Speaks on Solar!

One voter at the AAUW public forum last night asked about the potential for developing solar power in South Dakota. Scott gave a great answer, showing his knowledge of what’s already happening with solar and the practical challenges we face in further developing solar and other alternative energy sources. Scott knows we need to develop alternative energy, but he has a realistic understanding of what it will take to build a sustainable energy future. Here’s the video:

AAUW Forum: Parsley Offers Vision for South Dakota

Thanks to the Madison AAUW for hosting a very informative public forum for the District 8 Senate and House candidates last night (Tuesday, October 7). Scott joined the other candidates for Senate and House at the DSU Trojan Center to answer questions from the audience on energy, education, and economic development.

Scott actually laid out those Big Three E’s—energy, education, and economic development—in his opening remarks as the biggest issues facing South Dakota, and the audience appeared to agree, as all of their questions addressed those issues.

On energy, Scott highlighted his long experience at East River Electric in promoting alternative energy, from his involvement with the first large wind turbine project in Chamberlain to helping ranchers get small solar units to run water pumps. He also highlighted his own legislative experience. Scott hasn’t served in elected office yet, but he has already worked with the electric cooperatives to craft wind energy legislation and get it passed in Pierre. Scott highlighted his experience in the 2008 Legislative session, when he worked with Governor Rounds’s office to create tax incentives for wind power. (The Governor signed that legislation, HB 1320, on March 17.)

Scott emphasized that South Dakota still has some catching up to do on wind power. Our neighbors in Minnesota and Iowa still create a better tax and business climate for wind power (and anyone driving through those states will see the wind turbines to prove it). Scott also said we need to take a lesson from the ethanol industry and promote more local ownership of wind power. If local landowners and investors have an ownership stake in new wind farms, more of the profits from those wind farms will be plowed back into  the local economy.

On education, Scott spoke out for restoring programs like the Mickelson Scholarship and enhancing existing funding for encouraging our best and brightest to get their education in South Dakota and stick around for their careers. Scott also sees the need to invest more in education from the university system, through K-12, and right down to early childhood. Scott spoke of how folks he talks to from out of state ask why we don’t invest more in education. That negative perception hurts our ability to recruit new businesses. We thus need to invest more in education, for the sake of our own kids and our economic development aspirations.

But where will that money come from? Contrary to what you might think, South Dakota has lots of money in the bank. Scott pointed to over $1.5 billion in various state trust funds and accounts—that’s over a year’s worth of the state’s operating budget! We should tap some of those existing revenues, because, as Scott said, it’s “more important to grow students than grow trust funds.”

Scott laid out a clear vision for South Dakota at last night’s forum. He knows investment in energy and education can serve as the foundation for the economic development we need to create real opportunity and wealth for our young people and the whole state.

You can read a summary of the questions at the AAUW forum and all the candidates’ responses here.

Winning Votes in Windy Woonsocket!

The Parsley for Senate campaign had a great sunny Saturday for campaigning door to door in Woonsocket. Scott, Jeff, and Cory spent five hours hiking the whole town — they’re pretty sure that they could count thehouses they didn’t visit on one hand. Again, the reception from lots of folks was encouraging: folks in Woonsocket are as ready for some new voices in Pierre as folks in the rest of District 8. Scott and the crew handed out a lot of literature and helped Woonsocket go “Parsley Green” with more of Scott’s signs! (Those signs may be standing at a 45-degree angle in today’s stiff southeasterly wind, but they are standing!)

The campaign crew also enjoyed a really good lunch (and ice cream!) at Woonsocket’s newest eatery, the Way Station coffee shop on Highway 34. Yum!

Parsley Marches in DSU Homecoming Parade

Madison had a great time Saturday hosting Dakota State University’s traditional “Trojan Days” homecoming parade. Scott had a great time, too, marching the parade route with his supporters and getting to visit with lots of voters on a gorgeous autumn day.

Scott’s wife Val takes a break from grading papers to work the crowd enthusiastically. (Click on this photo and the others for a larger view!)

Driving past the new Lake County Democratic headquarters on Egan Avenue, Scott’s truck becomes the Campaign-Mobile for a day. (Oh yeah, we think that Herseth Sandlin gal is worth your vote, too!)

Campaigning is a family affair: Mary Parsley takes a break from parade campaigning for a picture with her boy Scott.

And the campaign marches on: Woonsocket this coming weekend, the first candidates’ forum on October 7^th hosted at DSU by the AAUW… it’s going to be a big month for Scott and the campaign! If you’d like to help, just give us a shout!

We Can Do Better!

Click here to see Scott introduce himself to the voters of District 8 on South Dakota Public Broadcasting. Experience, energy, and forward-thinking ideas–you can see for yourself why Scott should be our district’s next state Senator!

And if you’d like to talk with Scott personally, make plans to be in downtown Madison this Saturday (Sept. 27) morning. Scott will be there for the DSU Trojan Days Parade, which begins at 10:00 a.m. See you there!