Pam Cole
Pamela Merchant Cole | |
---|---|
Member of the South Dakota Senate from the 7th district | |
In office 2009–2011 | |
Preceded by | Orville B. Smidt |
Succeeded by | Larry Tidemann |
Personal details | |
Born | Pamela Merchant December 18, 1967[1] Walhalla, North Dakota[2] |
Political party | Democratic |
Alma mater | Rocky Mountain College of Art and Design[3] South Dakota State University[4] |
Profession | Graphic designer |
Pamela Merchant Cole (born December 18, 1967) is a graphic designer and former Democratic member of the South Dakota Senate who represented the 7th district from 2009 to 2011. She was also the executive director of the South Dakota Democratic Party from 2020 to 2021.[5][6]
Career
[edit]Cole was elected to the 7th district state senate seat in the 2008 election, beating Republican Orville B. Smidt. She served on the Commerce Committee, the Health and Human Service Committee and the Taxation Committee. She lost her seat at the 2010 election, being beaten by Larry Tidemann.[3]
In 2016, she moved from Brookings to Sioux Falls.[5] She was made the executive director of the South Dakota Democratic Party in February 2020,[7] after the party leadership had resigned due to the party misstating its finances and finding itself in debt.[8] In September 2020, Cole announced that the party had been "extremely frugal" in its recent spending and was once again financially stable.[9] She resigned in February 2021 for personal reasons.[6]
In 2022, Cole filed to run for the at-large B seat on Sioux Falls city council as incumbent Christine Erickson was term limited. She lost to Rich Merkouris, a local pastor.[10][11][12]
Electoral history
[edit]2008
[edit]Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
---|---|---|---|---|
Democratic | Pam Merchant | 1,128 | 52.03 | |
Democratic | Craig A. Tschetter | 1,040 | 47.97 | |
Total votes | 2,168 | 100.0 |
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
---|---|---|---|---|
Democratic | Pam Merchant | 4,940 | 51.16 | |
Republican | Orville B. Smidt | 4,716 | 48.84 | |
Total votes | 9,656 | 100.00 | ||
Democratic gain from Republican |
2010
[edit]Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
---|---|---|---|---|
Republican | Larry Tidemann | 4,289 | 54.15 | |
Democratic | Pam Merchant | 3,631 | 45.85 | |
Total votes | 7,920 | 100.00 | ||
Republican gain from Democratic |
2022
[edit]Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
---|---|---|---|---|
no description | Rich Merkouris | 14,493 | 56.99 | |
no description | Pam Cole | 10,936 | 43.01 | |
Total votes | 25,429 | 100.00 |
Personal life
[edit]Cole married her husband Mike in 2018 and together they have a blended family of five adult children.[4]
Notes
[edit]References
[edit]- ^ "Pamela K. Merchant". South Dakota Legislature. Retrieved July 16, 2022.
- ^ "About Me". Merchant for Senate. Archived from the original on August 30, 2010. Retrieved July 16, 2022.
- ^ a b "Pam Merchant". Ballotpedia. Retrieved July 16, 2022.
- ^ a b "News: Cole to seek Sioux Falls At Large B city council seat". Pam Cole for Council. January 10, 2022. Retrieved July 16, 2022.
- ^ a b "Cole named new SDDP director". The Brookings Register. February 27, 2020. Retrieved July 16, 2022.
- ^ a b "Executive Director of SDDP to leave position at end of February". South Dakota Democratic Party. February 9, 2021. Retrieved July 16, 2022.
- ^ "South Dakota Democratic Party hires new executive director". KEVN. February 26, 2020. Retrieved July 16, 2022.
- ^ Lisa Kaczke (October 23, 2019). "South Dakota Democratic Party leadership resigns amid financial woes". Argus Leader. Retrieved July 16, 2022.
- ^ Lisa Kaczke (September 3, 2020). "Last year, S.D. Democrats were in the red. With new leadership, the party now moves on". Argus Leader. Retrieved July 16, 2022.
- ^ Trevor J. Mitchell (October 12, 2021). "Local pastor, non-profit leader Rich Merkouris files to run for At-Large B council seat". Argus Leader. Retrieved July 16, 2022.
- ^ Trevor J. Mitchell (January 10, 2022). "Former executive director of South Dakota Democratic Party files for At-Large B council seat". Argus Leader. Retrieved July 16, 2022.
- ^ a b "2022 Election Results". City of Sioux Falls. April 12, 2022. Retrieved July 16, 2022.
- ^ a b "South Dakota State Senate elections, 2008". Ballotpedia. Retrieved July 16, 2022.
- ^ "South Dakota State Senate elections, 2010". Ballotpedia. Retrieved July 16, 2022.
- ^ "Candidates/Political Committees". City of Sioux Falls. Retrieved July 16, 2022.
- 1967 births
- Living people
- American graphic designers
- American women graphic designers
- South Dakota State University alumni
- Democratic Party South Dakota state senators
- Women state legislators in South Dakota
- 21st-century American women politicians
- 21st-century members of the South Dakota Legislature
- South Dakota politician stubs