South Dakota governor vetoes bills trying to loosen gun laws
PIERRE, S.D. (AP) — South Dakota's Republican governor on Friday vetoed a pair of bills that would have loosened restrictions on carrying concealed guns in the conservative state.
Gov. Dennis Daugaard had warned he would veto the bills — one to let people carry concealed handguns without a permit, the other to allow concealed weapons in the Capitol building.
Daugaard's vetoes are the latest evidence of a split between a more moderate GOP governor and a Republican-held Legislature that grew even more conservative after the last election.
Last week, he signed a bill to give legal protections to faith-based organizations that refuse based on their religious beliefs to place children in certain households.
Republican Rep. Lynne DiSanto, who sponsored the constitutional carry bill, said that it should be a "no-brainer" for the Republican supermajorities in the statehouse to override the veto, urging people to contact their GOP lawmakers to support gun rights.