Shantel Krebs


Shantel Swedlund Krebs is an American businesswoman and former South Dakota Secretary of State. She previously served in the South Dakota House of Representatives and South Dakota Senate.

Early life and education

Shantel Krebs was born in South Dakota and graduated from Arlington High School in Arlington, South Dakota, in 1991.
Krebs attended Dakota State University in Madison, South Dakota, where she graduated with a bachelor's degree in business administration.

Business career

Shantel has opened retail businesses in downtown Sioux Falls. Before that, she worked in the healthcare industry.

Political career

Krebs represented the 10th district of the South Dakota Legislature from 2005 to 2015, serving in the House of Representatives from 2005-2011 and in the Senate from 2011-2015. Krebs was elected to majority whip posts in both chambers and was chairwoman of the Transportation committee in the House and the Agriculture & Natural Resources committee in the Senate. Her district included Lincoln County and Minnehaha County.

Secretary of state

Shantel was elected to the office of South Dakota Secretary of State in 2014, and sworn in on January 2, 2015.
Krebs ran unsuccessfully in the 2018 election for South Dakota's at-large congressional seat in the Republican primary.

Personal life

Shantel Krebs, then known as Shantel Swedlund, won Miss South Dakota 1997 and competed in the Miss America 1998 competition. She resides in Fort Pierre on a ranch with her husband, former TV news anchor Mitch Krebs. In 2016, Krebs gained media attention when she shot a rattlesnake on her back patio.
On June 5, 2019, Krebs, a board member of the Miss America Organization, replaced former Miss America 1989 and former Fox News personality Gretchen Carlson as Chairperson of the Miss America Organization.

Electoral history