A seventh Native American tribe in South Dakota has banned Gov. Kristi Noem (R) from its reservation after she made comments earlier this year suggesting tribal leaders benefited from drug cartels. The Crow Creek Sioux Tribe in central South Dakota voted Tuesday to ban Noem from its reservation, citing her cartel comments, the tribe confirmed on social media.

This decision means that only two of the nine reservations in the state have not banned Noem from visiting. "The people voted unanimously to ban her along with the tribal council for her derogatory remarks about the tribes and cartels,” tribal council member Kyle Loudner told The Dakota Scout. “And about the remarks she made about the children being nobodies their whole lives because of the parents.”

The Hill has reached out to the Crow Creek Sioux Tribe for further comment.

At a forum in March, Noem stated, “We’ve got some tribal leaders that I believe are personally benefiting from the cartels being there, and that’s why they attack me every day.” She added that she would continue to fight for people who live in fear, specifically referencing the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation.

Peter Lengkeek, chair of the Crow Creek Sioux Tribe, refuted these allegations, saying, "We have cartel products, like guns and drugs. But they pass over state highways getting to the reservation. So, putting us all together like that and saying that all tribes are involved in this really shows the ignorance of the governor’s office,” NPR reported.

A spokesperson for Noem argued that banning the governor does not resolve the issue. “Banishing Governor Noem does nothing to solve the problem,” the spokesperson told The Hill. “She calls on all our tribal leaders to banish the cartels from tribal lands.”

Relations between Native American tribes in South Dakota and Noem have been strained since she took office in 2019, with her recent comments exacerbating tensions. Some tribes have accused Noem of making decisions to help former President Trump’s campaign efforts. Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe spokesperson Alli Moran told The Hill that numerous tribes “share the same sentiments” regarding Noem, specifically that she does not respect or fully understand tribal sovereignty.

Despite the bans, Noem defended her comments and urged tribes to support her law enforcement initiatives. “[Tribal] leaders should take action to ban the cartels from their lands and accept my offer to help them restore law and order to their communities while protecting their sovereignty,” Noem wrote. “We can only do this through partnerships because the Biden Administration is failing to do their job.”

Noem's recent challenges have extended beyond her relations with the tribes. She has faced backlash over an anecdote in her new memoir, “No Going Back: The Truth on What’s Wrong with Politics and How We Move America Forward,” in which she described shooting her dog after it attacked a neighbor’s chickens and tried to bite her. Noem defended her actions, arguing that the incident showed her authenticity and ability to make difficult choices.

This string of negative news has led some to speculate that Noem may no longer be on Trump's shortlist for vice president, though the former president has defended her. “We all have bad weeks,” Trump said to conservative podcast hosts Clay Travis and Buck Sexton. “And when explained — the dog story, people hear that and people from different parts of the country probably feel a bit differently, but that’s a tough story.”

Trump suggested that Noem might not be entirely to blame for the book’s contents. “Until this week, she was doing incredibly well. And she got hit hard, and sometimes you do books, and you have some guy writing a book and you maybe don’t read it as carefully, you know,” Trump added. “You have ghostwriters too. They help you, and they, in this case, didn’t help too much.”

The growing tensions and recent controversies illustrate the ongoing political struggles and public relations challenges faced by Noem as she navigates her position and potential future ambitions.