Shantel Krebs

Shantel Swedlund Krebs (born April 28, 1973) 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.

Shantel Krebs is currently CEO and regional president for Avera St. Mary's Hospital in Pierre, SD. Prior to this role, she was a founding partner with Avera Health and Southeast Technical Institute of the Avera Academy. She served as administrator for Avera Academy, a program that trains high school students for careers in healthcare.

Early life and education Shantel Krebs was born in South Dakota and graduated from Arlington High School in Arlington, South Dakota, in 1991.

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. She also served on the Senate Health and Human services committee. Her district included Lincoln County and Minnehaha County. and competed in the Miss America 1998 competition.

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. Krebs was inducted into the South Dakota Hall of Fame on September 10, 2022.

Electoral history