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Fred Deutsch

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Fred Deutsch
Member of the South Dakota House of Representatives
from the 4th district
Personal details
Born (1957-03-09) March 9, 1957 (age 67)
Political partyRepublican
Residence(s)Florence, South Dakota, U.S.
ProfessionChiropractor

Fred Deutsch (born March 9, 1957)[1] is an American politician and a Republican member of the South Dakota House of Representatives representing District 4. Deutsch lost a bid for the South Dakota Senate in the 2024 Republican Primary; his term as State Representative ends in January of 2025. Deutsch lives in rural Florence, which is near Watertown, South Dakota and in Codington County in the northeast portion of the state.

Background

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Deutsch previously served nine years on the Watertown Board of Education, and was first elected to the state house in 2014. He was re-elected in 2018, coming in first in a five-way race.[2][3] He first attempted to run for the District 4 seat in 2012 but lost, placing third after Democrats Kathy Tyler and Jim Peterson.[4]

Deutsch is a chiropractor, as is his wife Kathleen. He practices at Deutsch Chiropractic in Watertown, SD.[5] He graduated from Kalamazoo College in 1979 and obtained a chiropractic degree from Northwestern Health Sciences University in 1983.[1]

Transgender legislation

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In February 2016, Deutsch drew national attention for introducing one of the earliest bathroom bills, which aimed to make it illegal for public school students to use a bathroom, shower room or locker room for a sex other than their sex at birth.[6][7] The bill was vetoed by Republican Governor Dennis Daugaard.[8]

In 2020, Deutsch introduced a bill that would make it a felony for pediatricians to provide sex change operations or opposite-sex hormones to youth ages 15 and under, punishing doctors with up to ten years in prison.[9] The bill received strong opposition from physicians.[10] It passed the State House of Representatives but was defeated in the State Senate.[11] The bill was developed by Deutsch in coalition with a secretive network of anti-transgender activists involved with conservative groups such as Alliance Defending Freedom, the American College of Pediatricians, Eagle Forum, Liberty Counsel, and the Christian Medical and Dental Associations. One member was Elisa Rae Shupe, who at the time had detransitioned. Shupe later retransitioned and disavowed her involvement. Though the bill failed, it was influential in the development of more successful anti-trans bills in numerous other states. An updated version of Deutsch's bill led by Bethany Soye was passed and signed into law in February 2023.[12]

2024 Republican Primary Election

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The South Dakota Republican Primary Election was held on June 4, 2024.[13] Fred Deutsch faced off against fellow District 4 State Representative Stephanie Sauder of Byrant, South Dakota.[14] South Dakota News Watch listed the race as one of the top 5 primaries in the state to watch.[15] Stu Whitney, writing for South Dakota News Watch, said, "Nowhere is the trend of establishment vs. far right more pronounced than in this district of rural counties surrounding Watertown, where longtime state Rep. Fred Deu[s]tch is running for Senate."[16]

In the end, Sauder received 1,868 votes (51%) to Deutsch's 1,804 (49%).[17] Sauder won Clark and Hamlin counties while Deutsch won Roberts, Codington, Deuel, and Grant.[18] With results qualifying for a recount, Deutsch stated to Keloland News that he intended to seek a recount.[19]

Without any statewide Republican races, statewide voter turnout stalled at 17.09% (101,028 votes) of all registered voters; 76,644 of 287,376 registered Republicans voted.

This was not the first contest between Deutsch and Sauder. Previously in 2022, Deutsch and Sauder were the successful candidates in a four-way primary where Sauder bested Deutsch by 59 votes out of 7,132 total votes.[20]

References

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  1. ^ a b Legislative Manual South Dakota 2015, p. 126 (2015)
  2. ^ (2 Feb 2014). Fred Deutsch to run for District 4 House, dakotawarcollege.com
  3. ^ (11 November 2014). Dr. Fred Deutsch Resigns From Watertown School Board After Winning State House Seat, KXLG
  4. ^ (20 November 2014). What to do when you suffer a political loss? You come back & win! 5 Questions with…. Rep-Elect Fred Deutsch, dakotawarcollege.com
  5. ^ "Deutsch Chiropractic Clinic Website". 7 March 2017.
  6. ^ Smith, Mitch (25 February 2016). South Dakota Bill on Transgender Students’ Bathroom Access Draws Ire, The New York Times
  7. ^ Kern, Sydney (24 January 2016). A House Bill Dealing With Transgender Students And School Bathrooms Creates Controversy, KDLT
  8. ^ Brown, Emma. "South Dakota governor vetoes bill that would have restricted transgender students' access to school restrooms". The Washington Post. Retrieved 11 February 2020.
  9. ^ Sopelsa, Brooke. "South Dakota bill would make trans health care for minors a felony". NBC News. Retrieved 11 February 2020.
  10. ^ Turban, Jack. "What South Dakota Doesn't Get About Transgender Children". The New York Times. Retrieved 11 February 2020.
  11. ^ Fitzsimmons, Tim. "South Dakota's trans health bill is effectively dead, opponents say". NBC News. Retrieved 11 February 2020.
  12. ^ Pauly, Madison (March 8, 2023). "Inside the Secret Working Group That Helped Push Anti-Trans Laws Across the Country". Mother Jones.
  13. ^ "Upcoming Elections: South Dakota Secretary of State". sdsos.gov. Retrieved 2024-06-05.
  14. ^ "2024 Primary Election Candidate List Candidate List". vip.sdsos.gov. Retrieved 2024-06-05.
  15. ^ "Five races to watch in South Dakota Senate primaries". South Dakota News Watch. 2024-04-25. Retrieved 2024-06-05.
  16. ^ "Five races to watch in South Dakota Senate primaries". South Dakota News Watch. 2024-04-25. Retrieved 2024-06-05.
  17. ^ "South Dakota Secretary of State". electionresults.sd.gov. Retrieved 2024-06-05.
  18. ^ "South Dakota Secretary of State". electionresults.sd.gov. Retrieved 2024-06-05.
  19. ^ "Voters show discontent in GOP legislative primaries". KELOLAND.com. 2024-06-05. Retrieved 2024-06-05.
  20. ^ "South Dakota Secretary of State". electionresults.sd.gov. Retrieved 2024-06-05.
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