SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (AP) — South Dakota’s top elections official has apologized for the state releasing information about voters who also were seeking public assistance, such as food aid.
Secretary of State Monae Johnson made the voter registration rolls of more than 600,000 voters public last month to comply with a new state law. But the spreadsheet of voter information also included a field for source of registration, which disclosed whether an individual registered to vote at a public assistance agency, such as those offering housing help and food assistance.
Federal law prohibits the government from releasing information about those receiving public assistance.
The data leak drew condemnation from across the state, and the American Civil Liberties Union called it an “egregious violation of voters’ privacy rights.”
Johnson apologized on Friday.
“As Secretary of State, I take full responsibility for the release of this information. My office is committed to both transparency and protecting voter privacy," Johnson said in statement. “Upon discovering the issue, we acted immediately to remove the data and prevent further dissemination.”
The information was taken off the website Friday, the day after the ACLU sent a letter to the office demanding the state fix the issue. Individuals who had their information disclosed have been notified by mail, and those with access to the information will be asked to delete it.
The secretary of state also clarified that registering at a public assistance agency does not necessarily mean an individual is receiving benefits. In South Dakota, a person can register to vote at driver's license exam stations, disability service offices, military recruitment centers and county auditor offices in addition to public assistance agencies.
The ACLU is now encouraging those who were impacted to fill out their legal intake form.
"Essentially, voters who exercised their right to register to vote at public benefits offices were punished for it through this substantial privacy violation,” ACLU South Dakota Advocacy Manager Samantha Chapman said.
South Dakota Attorney General Marty Jackley is appointing legal counsel to represent the Secretary of State's office and the state legislature in case of potential lawsuits.
FILE - South Dakota Republican Secretary of State Monae Johnson is pictured in her office on Jan. 11, 2024, in Pierre, S.D. (AP Photo/Jack Dura, file)
CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) — Venezuela’s acting President Delcy Rodríguez on Thursday asked lawmakers to approve reforms to the oil industry that would open the doors to greater foreign investment during her first state of the union speech less than two weeks after its longtime leader was toppled by the United States.
Rodríguez, who has been under pressure by the Trump administration to fall in line with its vision for the oil-rich nation, said sales of Venezuelan oil would go to bolster crisis-stricken health services, economic development and other infrastructure projects.
She outlined a distinct vision for the future, straying from her predecessors, who have long railed against American intervention in Venezeula. “Let us not be afraid of diplomacy” with the U.S., said Rodriguez, the former vice president who must now navigate competing pressures from the Trump administration and a government loyal to former President Nicolás Maduro.
The speech, which was broadcast on a delay in Venezuela, came one day after Rodríguez said her government would continue releasing prisoners detained under Maduro in what she described as “a new political moment” since his ouster.
On Thursday, Trump met at the White House with Venezuelan opposition leader María Corina Machado, whose political party is widely considered to have won 2024 elections rejected by Maduro. But in endorsing Rodríguez, who served as Maduro’s vice president since 2018, Trump has sidelined Machado.
Rodríguez, who had a call with Trump earlier this week, said Wednesday evening on state television that her government would use “every dollar” earned from oil sales to overhaul the nation’s public health care system. Hospitals and other health care facilities across the country have long been crumbling, and patients are asked to provide practically all supplies needed for their care, from syringes to surgical screws.
The acting president must walk a tightrope, balancing pressures from both Washington and top Venezuelan officials who hold sway over Venezuela's security forces and strongly oppose the U.S. Her recent public speeches reflect those tensions — vacillating from conciliatory calls for cooperation with the U.S., to defiant rants echoing the anti-imperialist rhetoric of her toppled predecessor.
American authorities have long railed against a government they describe as a “dictatorship,” while Venezuela’s government has built a powerful populist ethos sharply opposed to U.S. meddling in its affairs.
For the foreseeable future, Rodríguez's government has been effectively relieved of having to hold elections. That's because when Venezuela’s high court granted Rodríguez presidential powers on an acting basis, it cited a provision of the constitution that allows the vice president to take over for a renewable period of 90 days.
Trump enlisted Rodríguez to help secure U.S. control over Venezuela’s oil sales despite sanctioning her for human rights violations during his first term. To ensure she does his bidding, Trump threatened Rodríguez earlier this month with a “situation probably worse than Maduro.”
Maduro, who is being held in a Brooklyn jail, has pleaded not guilty to drug-trafficking charges.
Before Rodríguez’s speech on Thursday, a group of government supporters was allowed into the presidential palace, where they chanted for Maduro, who the government insists remains the country’s president. “Maduro, resist, the people are rising,” they shouted.
Follow AP’s coverage of Latin America and the Caribbean at https://apnews.com/hub/latin-america
Venezuela's acting President Delcy Rodriguez makes a statement to the press at Miraflores presidential palace in Caracas, Venezuela, Wednesday, Jan. 14, 2026. (AP Photo/Ariana Cubillos)
Venezuela's acting President Delcy Rodriguez, center, smiles flanked by Interior Minister Diosdado Cabello, right, and National Assembly President Jorge Rodriguez after making a statement to the press at Miraflores presidential palace in Caracas, Venezuela, Wednesday, Jan. 14, 2026. (AP Photo/Ariana Cubillos)
