The door may be closing on Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem’s tenure in President Donald Trump’s Cabinet, but another remains open: running for Senate in her home state of South Dakota, as the filing deadline has not yet passed.
Speculation that Noem could mount a run sparked Thursday after President Donald Trump announced he was moving Noem out of the Department of Homeland Security and appointing her as special envoy for the “Shield of the Americas,” a Western Hemisphere security initiative the administration plans to unveil Saturday in Doral, Florida. Trump announced the move on Truth Social.
Speaking later in Nashville, Tennessee, while delivering the keynote address at the Sergeants Benevolent Association Major Cities Conference, Noem said the initiative will focus on combating drug cartels across the region.
“We have all kinds of new challenges, and that’s why President Trump is going after the cartels by addressing it from the Western Hemisphere,” Noem said, adding that the administration plans to work with regional partners to target cartel networks and drug trafficking.
Even before the shift, there had been quiet talk among Republican operatives that Noem could consider challenging Sen. Mike Rounds (R-SD) in the 2026 Senate primary in South Dakota, according to reporting from the Atlantic.
South Dakota law allows party nominating petitions to be filed between Jan. 1 and 5 p.m. local time on March 31, 2026, for the primary scheduled for June 2. Candidates must submit 2,171 valid signatures from supporters statewide to qualify for the ballot.
Rounds has faced conservative primary opposition before and prevailed comfortably. In 2020, he defeated a challenger running to his right by 50 percentage points. But Noem, a former governor with national name recognition, would likely pose a far more serious threat.
A Senate bid could also give Noem a political landing spot after leaving the administration. If Democrats win back the House next year, they are expected to intensify oversight of the Department of Homeland Security, including decisions made during her tenure. Holding a Senate seat would provide staff resources and a national fundraising platform as she navigates possible scrutiny.
Still, the path would not be easy. While Trump and Rounds have clashed at times, particularly after Rounds said the 2020 election was legitimate, the president ultimately endorsed the South Dakota senator for reelection last summer, posting on Truth Social that Rounds “will never let you down.”
Rounds also enjoys strong support within the Senate Republican conference. Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-SD), the state’s senior senator and a close ally of Rounds, would likely back him if Noem mounted a primary challenge.
Asked recently about speculation that Noem could run against him, Rounds downplayed the possibility.
“We’ve had no contact with them on it at all,” Rounds told the Washington Examiner. “We’ve basically been focused on just doing our job here. If we do our job here, then everything else works out.”
Another potential path for Noem would be a return to the at-large House seat she held from 2011 to 2019, which will be open after Rep. Dusty Johnson (R-SD) announced a run for governor.
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Noem has also previously hinted at broader national ambitions, including the possibility of joining a Republican presidential ticket or launching a White House bid of her own.
For now, any decision would have to come quickly. Entering the race now would leave Noem with little time to build a campaign. South Dakota’s primary is set for June 2, giving the former governor less than three months to organize and compete in the race.
David Sivak contributed to this report.