RAPID CITY, S.D. – Rapid City Mayor Steve Allender has indicated that he does not plan to run for another term next year.
Allender has served three mayoral terms and said he won’t run again even if there isn’t a candidate he thinks is suitable for the next election cycle. He said to run again would be too much to ask of him.
Allender, 61, began his career in public service in 1983, first working for the Belle Fourche Police Department. After two years, he moved to the Rapid City Police Department, where he served the community until 2014, eventually in the role of police chief. The following year, he was elected mayor.
He served two, two-year terms and was the first to serve a four-year term.
In the last several years, Rapid City has seen explosive growth. According to the United States Census, the city was the fastest growing metro area in the Midwest from 2020 to 2021.
That growth has not come without its challenges. There has been an increases in the homeless population and crime.
But Allender told media that neither of those things are the primary challenges. Rather, it’s the continued political and social divisiveness in the community that is detrimental to present and future direction by city leaders. “This is a divided community and we are a divided nation,” he said. “This is going to be a concern for any mayor in any community.”
The next election for the office will take place in June 2023. Allender’s term will end the following month.
