The chairman of the South Dakota Republican Party is coming under fire for suggesting that the 2002 U.S. Senate election in which Indian voters played a critical role was stolen.

In a letter to Republicans in the state, chairman Randy Frederick said the party must increase its efforts to get people to the polls to "prevent the voter irregularities that stole the 2002 election from us by 524 votes."

Frederick did not elaborate on the alleged irregularities and a spokesperson said he wasn't necessarily referring to the Indian vote. But Republican John Thune, who lost the 2002 election to Sen. Tim Johnson (D), said he disagrees that the election was stolen.

Thune is now running against Sen. Tom Daschle (D), who criticized Frederick for making the claim of a stolen election.

Get the Story:
Daschle: Republican letter does about-face (The Rapid City Journal 9/10)

Get the Letter:
South Dakota GOP Chairman (August 28, 2004)

Relevant Links:
South Dakota GOP - http://www.southdakotagop.com

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