Troy Heinert (born July 29, 1972) is an American politician who served in the

South Dakota Senate The South Dakota Senate is the upper house of the South Dakota Legislature. It consists of 35 members, one representing each legislative district. It meets at the South Dakota State Capitol in Pierre. Composition :''99th Legislature (2025)' ...

. Elected to the Senate in 2014, he was elected in 2015 as Senate assistant minority leader.Sarah Sunshine Manning, "Sanders Advocates for Tribes, Mother Earth"
''Indian Country Today'', 23 May 2016, accessed 23 May 2016 He was elected minority leader in 2018. He was first elected to the state house in 2012 and served for one term.

Early life and education

Heinert was born in

Spearfish Spearfish may refer to: Places * Spearfish, South Dakota, United States * North Spearfish, South Dakota, United States * Spearfish Formation, a geologic formation in the United States Biology * ''Tetrapturus'', a genus of marlin with shorter ...

South Dakota South Dakota (; Sioux language, Sioux: , ) is a U.S. state, state in the West North Central states, North Central region of the United States. It is also part of the Great Plains. South Dakota is named after the Dakota people, Dakota Sioux ...

."Troy Heinert"
VoteSmart, 2016 He grew up on a ranch. His father died when he was 12, but he was taken under the wing of a close family friend. He attended local schools, where he graduated with a BS degree in education. He is a member of the

Rosebud Sioux Tribe The Rosebud Indian Reservation is an Indian reservation in South Dakota, United States. It is the home of the federally recognized Rosebud Sioux Tribe, who are Sicangu, a band of Lakota people. The Lakota language, Lakota name ''Sicangu Oyate'' ...

Career

Heinert started work as an elementary school teacher, working also as a wrestling coach.Brett Marshall, "Cowboy, educator, legislator"
''Garden City Telegram,'' 12 June 2015, accessed 23 May 2016 He first ran for electoral office on the Todd County High School Board, winning a seat and serving for 3 years. Heinert and his wife in 2007 became owners of Chute 2, a bar and restaurant attached to the Prairie View country club in

Mission Mission (from Latin 'the act of sending out'), Missions or The Mission may refer to: Geography Australia *Mission River (Queensland) Canada *Mission, British Columbia, a district municipality * Mission, Calgary, Alberta, a neighbourhood * ...

. He became close to Jim Korkow, who was friends with his father, especially after his father's death. Korkow has acted as a father to him. In 2012, Heinert was elected as a Democrat to the South Dakota House of Representatives from District 26A, comprising Todd and Mellette counties. In 2014, Heinert was elected to the state senate. He was succeeded in the house from District 26A by Shawn Bordeaux also of Mission.

Personal life

He married Gena and they have two sons and a daughter. They lived in

Mission, South Dakota Mission is a city on the Rosebud Indian Reservation in northern Todd County, South Dakota, United States. The population was 1,156 at the 2020 census. Mission is home of the Sinte Gleska University. It is the largest incorporated community in ...

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Heinert, Troy 1972 births Living people Democratic Party members of the South Dakota House of Representatives Democratic Party South Dakota state senators Native American state legislators in South Dakota People from Spearfish, South Dakota People from Mission, South Dakota Rosebud Sioux people 21st-century members of the South Dakota Legislature