OUTRAGEOUS! South Dakota GOP Delegates Protect RINO John Thune — Overwhelmingly Vote Down Censure Resolution After He Tanks the SAVE America Act

The South Dakota Republican Party on Friday turned its back on grassroots conservatives and the America First agenda by voting down a resolution to censure Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-SD) over his repeated failure to advance President Donald Trump’s critical SAVE America Act.

The measure had already cleared the party’s Resolutions Committee, where it was approved after strong support from activists.

But when it reached the full convention floor, it was overwhelmingly rejected. Opponents reportedly argued that censuring Thune would “only help Democrats.”

According to the summary of the resolution:

“While there are many ways in which John Thune’s performance as Senate Majority Leader have been found wanting, his failure in regards to the SAVE America Act is his most glaring, and can not be ignored. It is for this reason that we, the elected representatives of the South Dakota Republican Party, find it regretfully necessary to censure South Dakota Senator and US Senate Majority Leader John Randolph Thune until such time as the SAVE America Act is officially signed into law.”

[…]

“In adopting this resolution, the South Dakota Republican Party makes it abundantly and unquestionably clear that South Dakota Senator and U.S. Senate Majority Leader John Thune’s failure in regards to the SAVE America Act is unacceptable. As such, the South Dakota Republican Party regretfully finds it necessary to issue an official censure of Senator Thune, to be withdrawn only at such a time as Senator Thune oversees the SAVE America Act being passed into law by passage through the U.S. Senate, and then being officially signed into law by President Trump.”

The resolution was submitted by Michael Stangeland of Minnehaha County and supported by Paula Mowry, Lawrence County Precinct 2 Committeewoman. It represented real grassroots frustration after years of Thune and Senate leadership slow-walking or outright blocking the very election security measures Trump ran on and won with.

President Trump has repeatedly made clear that the SAVE America Act is non-negotiable. The American people agree. South Dakota’s own legislature agreed. Yet Senate Majority Leader John Thune has treated it as optional.

The resolution passed the Resolutions Committee. Then the full convention killed it in a raucous voice vote.

Opponents argued the censure would only help Democrats. Help Democrats? By refusing to hold Thune accountable for blocking one of the most popular election integrity measures in the country, the delegates handed Democrats a free pass to keep exploiting weak voter laws.

According to Punchbowl News’ Andrew Desiderio, “The South Dakota Republican Party just *rejected* a proposed censure of John Thune Didn’t even get a roll-call vote among the delegates.”

NEWS — The South Dakota Republican Party just *rejected* a proposed censure of John Thune

Didn’t even get a roll-call vote among the delegates https://t.co/FJ2c3pVrlM

— Andrew Desiderio (@AndrewDesiderio) June 26, 2026

As The Gateway Pundit previously reported, Thune himself declared the SAVE America Act “dead… for now” just weeks ago. He admitted it failed to even secure 50 votes on the Senate floor and claimed there was no path forward without nuking the filibuster, something he has no interest in doing despite President Trump’s repeated calls.

Earlier this year, The Gateway Pundit also exposed Thune dismissing the massive grassroots pressure campaign for the bill as nothing more than “propaganda by ‘paid influencers.’”

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