Karla Lems
South Dakota State Representative, District 16 since 2022. Did not run for re-election in 2026; leaves office in January 2027.
- In office
- 3 yrs
- Since 2022
- Bills became law
- 12
- 37 sponsored, 2025–2026 session
- Votes missed
- 0.2%
- Chamber median 0.8%
- With party
- 96%
- On votes splitting the parties
- Last margin
- +3.0
- Won 2024
Source: Wikidata, congress-legislators and Open States; 99chambers legislative recordsUpdated Oct 27, 2026, 9:43 AM ET
Committees
As of 2026-10.
- Commerce and Energy · chair
- Legislative Procedure · vice chair
- Bonding
- Government Operations and Audit
- Government Operations and Audit
- Legislative Procedure
- State Affairs
Source: Open States committeesUpdated Oct 27, 2026, 9:43 AM ET
Legislation
Administrative Procedure · Became law Mar 2026
Administrative Rule Revision · Became law Mar 2026
Eminent Domain · Became law Mar 2026
Election Verification · Became law Mar 2026
Source: Open States billsUpdated Nov 6, 2026, 4:22 PM ET
Voting record
Where Lems sits in the South Dakota House of Representatives
Lems is closer to the center than 26% of the chamber's Republicans.
Closest: Tesa Schwans, Spencer Gosch, Jon Hansen
Source: 99chambers roll-call scalingUpdated Nov 6, 2026, 5:01 PM ET
With Lems’s party
- Votes with the chamber's Republicans96%
Black tick: the average of Republicans in the South Dakota House of Representatives.
Source: 99chambers legislative scores from roll calls and cosponsorships
Key votes
Votes chosen for their effect, not their side: Lems’s vote, each party’s majority, and the result. An orange vote differs from most Republicans.
| Date | Bill | Lems | Rep. majority | Dem. majority | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mar 30, 2026 | HB 1138: require the licensure of non-medical home care agencies, and to provide a penalty therefor. | No | Yes | Yes | Failed 36–27 |
| Mar 30, 2026 | HB 1077: consider a cultivated-protein food product to be adulterated food. | Yes | Yes | No | Failed 32–32 |
| Mar 9, 2026 | SB 245: create the homeowner property tax reduction fund, and to transfer moneys to the homeowner… | Yes | Yes | No | Passed 42–27 |
| Mar 5, 2026 | SB 159: revise requirements pertaining to the minimum age for marriage. | Yes | Yes | Yes | Passed 40–27 |
| Mar 5, 2026 | SB 179: permit a court to commit a juvenile adjudicated delinquent for certain weapons offenses to… | Yes | Yes | No | Passed 42–25 |
Source: 99chambers key votes from Congress.gov, Voteview and Open States roll calls
Career
Offices held, and every time Lems was on a ballot. Filled marks are general elections won; hollow marks are primaries; an orange outline is a loss.
Source: 99chambers results archive (MEDSL, Klarner, state election offices)
Elections
Margin against the seat’s presidential baseline: how the seat voted for president in the same or nearest year.
| Year | Race | Result | Margin |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | South Dakota House of Representatives, District 16 | Won | R+3.0 |
| 2022 | South Dakota House of Representatives, District 16 | Won | R+0.9 |
Source: 99chambers results archive
Seats Lems has held
- South Dakota House of Representatives, District 16 · since 2022
Source: 99chambers results archive
Who Lems has run against
- Richard Vasgaard (R) · 2024 general, won
- Kevin D. Jensen (R) · 2022 general, won
Source: 99chambers results archive
How we know Lems
One person, matched across every source we use.
- Open States ocd-person/0c864308-04a8-4b22-af5b-5d718046b99f
Source: Identity links: Wikidata, congress-legislators, Open States, FECUpdated Oct 27, 2026, 9:43 AM ET