South Dakota state Sen. Tom Pischke (R) faces up to 4 years in prison for election fraud charges
South Dakota state Sen. Tom Pischke (R-Dell Rapids) turned himself in to the Minnehaha County Sheriff’s Department on Tuesday after being charged with two election-related forgery charges, which could lead to multiple years in prison.
The 44-year-old Republican was charged with two counts of offering a false or forged Instrument for filing, a Class 6 felony. His initial hearing is set for July 7. Pischke’s lawyer, Ryan Kolbeck, told South Dakota Searchlight that the lawmaker is cooperating with the investigation but “has no further comment at this time.” If convicted, he could face up to four years in prison.
Pischke is accused of forging signatures on nomination forms to put precinct committee candidates on the ballot. Republican precinct committeepersons hold a variety of duties, including voting at county party meetings and voting for the GOP’s nominees in statewide elections.
In March, the Minnehaha County Auditor’s Office discovered these forms all had the same handwriting. After reaching out to the candidates, the office found that most of them did not even know about the form. The office also cross-referenced the suspected fraudulent signatures with the candidates’ real signatures, and 15 of them did not match.
https://heartlandsignal.com/2026/06/26/south-dakota-state-sen-tom-pischke-faces-up-to-4-years-in-prison-for-election-fraud-charges/