South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem attended the inauguration of President Joe Biden, but she still won’t say he beat Donald Trump fair and square. The Argus Leader reports that at a Thursday news conference, Noem was asked if she would retract her earlier claim the election system was “rigged”—and she dodged. “I think that we deserve fair and transparent elections. I think there’s a lot of people who have doubts about that,” she said. Noem’s refusal to acknowledge that the election was democratic sets her apart from the state’s two Republican senators, who voted to certify Biden’s election after “Stop the Steal” rioters stormed the Capitol on Jan. 6. The Argus Leader noted that by not repudiating the false election-was-stolen narrative, Noem could gain backing from Trump supporters as she seeks to raise her national profile.
