Catholic Diocese cuts checks in South Dakota's abortion fight

Church contributes $190K across two organizations opposing Amendment G

Six-figure donations from the Catholic Church have pushed fundraising past the million-dollar mark for a month-old organization formed to block the passage of Amendment G.

Campaign finance reports filed this week with the Secretary of State’s office show the Catholic Chancery Office has contributed nearly $200,000 to oppose the Dakotans for Health ballot measure that would end South Dakota’s near-total abortion ban. Cutting checks to two ballot question committees working to convince voters to reject the proposal — which would create tiered abortion policy based on a trimester framework similar to what was established by the now-defunct Roe v. Wade case — the Church contributed $50,000 to Life Defense Fund, which has led litigation against Dakotans for Health, and $140,000 to No G for SD, a campaign committee formed in mid-September to orchestrate a marketing campaign against Amendment G that recently began running radio, television, and digital advertisements.

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