Noem now banned from all South Dakota tribal lands

South Dakota Governor Kristy Noem (R) is now banned from all tribal lands in the state after the Flanders Santee Sioux voted Wednesday to ban her from the reservation, citing her repeated claims that tribal leaders are in league with drug cartels.

Noem sparked controversy in March when she said tribal leaders benefited from the presence of cartels operating on their land.

“I believe there are tribal leaders who personally benefit from the existence of cartels. That’s why they attack me every day,” the governor said at a forum in March. “But I’m going to fight for the people who are actually living in those conditions. They’re calling me and emailing me every day and saying, ‘Governor, please come to Pine Ridge and help me. We’re scared.”

Relations between the governor and the tribe have been strained since he took office in 2019. Some members of the tribe have accused Noem, who had been floated as Trump’s running mate, of making the decision to support Trump’s campaign.

All nine tribes in the state have banned Noem from accessing their lands, which make up about 20 percent of the Mount Rushmore State, because of her comments, but she has refused to rescind them. Earlier this month, the Sisseton Wahpeton Oyate and Yankton Sioux tribes voted to ban Noem from their reservations. The Standing Rock Sioux, Crow Creek Sioux, Rosebud, Cheyenne River Sioux, Oglala Sioux and Lower Brule Sioux tribes also voted similarly earlier this year.

Noem reiterated that sentiment in an interview last week.

“They’re definitely starting up in South Dakota. We’ve seen the Bandidos there, and MS-13 is there,” she said. “They’re recruiting members from tribes.”

Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe spokeswoman Allie Moran told The Hill last month that multiple tribes “share the same sentiment” regarding Noem, specifically that she He said the country does not respect sovereignty and “doesn’t fully understand” it.

The governor blamed the Biden administration for the crimes and called on tribal governments to do more to combat gang violence.

“These are some of the poorest communities I know, and they want safe communities. They want their children to be safe,” she said last week. “They don’t want this kind of violence happening outside their homes.”

“I’m the governor, so I don’t have jurisdiction there,” Noem continued. “If they’re a sovereign nation, the federal government has to step in and tribal leaders have to step in.”

The Hill has reached out to Noem’s office for comment.