Helene Duhamel

Helene Duhamel (born 1962) is an American politician and journalist serving as a member of the South Dakota Senate from the 32nd district.

Early life and education
A native of Rapid City, South Dakota, attended St. Martin's Academy. She earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in communication and international relations from Stanford University in 1984.

Career
After graduating from college, she worked as a news anchor for KDUH in Scottsbluff, Nebraska. In 1989, she returned to Rapid City.

Duhamel was appointed to the Senate by Governor Kristi Noem in 2019 to fill the vacancy left by Alan Solano. Duhamel had previously served as a television news anchor for KOTA-TV and as the public information office for the Pennington County Sheriff’s Office.

Electoral history
In 2020, Duhamel ran for re-election to the South Dakota State Senate to represent District 32; she was unopposed in the Republican primary. Duhamel beat Democratic challenger Michael Calabrese by 64% to 36%. Calabrese was a small business owner and served on the Rapid City Board of Parks and Recreation.

2020 Legislative Session
After her appointment to the State Senate, Duhamel represented District 32 during the 2020 South Dakota Legislative Session. Duhamel also served on the Local Government Interim Committee and as the Vice Chair of the Health and Human Services Interim Committee. In 2020, all four pieces of legislation that Duhamel prime sponsored were passed into law and signed by the Governor Kristi Noem.