The2014 Sioux Falls mayoral election took place on April 8, 2014. Incumbent MayorMike Huether, first elected in2010, ran for re-election to a second term. He was challenged by City CouncilmemberGreg Jamison. Huether defeated Jamison by a wide margin, though slightly reduced from his margin four years earlier, winning 56–44 percent.
Huether announced that he would seek a second term as mayor, arguing that he had "a pattern for getting stuff done for the city."[1]Greg Jamison, a member of the City Council, announced that he would challenge Huether for re-election, and "sharply criticiz[ed] Huether in his announcement, saying, "If we don't change the culture at City Hall, the Sioux Falls I've grown [in] and the quality of life . . . is going to be ruined."[2] Throughout the campaign, Jamison attacked Huether for his leadership style and unwillingness to compromise with others.[3]
Though the race was formally nonpartisan, the countyRepublican Party sent a postcard attacking Huether, a Democrat, shortly before the election. The postcard compared Huether to then-PresidentBarack Obama, said that he supported "higher taxes" and acted "like a dictator." Both Huether and Jamison, a Republican, condemned the postcard.[4]
TheArgus Leader endorsed Huether for another term, praising him for "presid[ing] over one of the more productive, transformative times in Sioux Falls history." Though theArgus Leader criticized him for "[h]is forceful approach to governing" and his "investment in a local development project," it noted that he was "a hard worker, a dedicated public servant and a driving, focused leader." It praised Jamison as "an earnest public servant, well-intentioned and dedicated," but not "the best fit for the mayor's position" when matched against Huether.[5]
Ultimately, Huether defeated Jamison by a wide margin, winning 56 percent of the vote to Jamison's 43 percent.
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