Neal Tapio
Neal Tapio is an American businessman, South Dakota state senator, and a former candidate for U.S. Representative for. Tapio gained attention as an early supporter of Donald Trump and served as the Trump presidential campaign director for South Dakota.
Early life and education
Neal Tapio was born in Watertown, South Dakota. Tapio graduated from Watertown High School in Watertown, South Dakota in 1988. Tapio attended Moorhead State University in Moorhead, Minnesota where he graduated in 1992 with a Bachelors in Business Administration. Tapio, directly out of college, worked as a staff assistant to then-U.S. Senator Larry Pressler in Washington, D.C. for two years.Business career
He worked in the finance industry for Wells Fargo in Rapid City, South Dakota. Tapio later founded New Horizon Homes in Sioux Falls, South Dakota. Before entering the petroleum industry, Tapio worked in the ethanol industry. He worked as a director of Growth Energy, an ethanol trade association.Tapio is the current CEO of NT Sales and Leasing in Watertown, South Dakota. Tapio's business has been heavily involved in the oil industry in the Bakken formation. During his time working in the oil fields, Tapio stated he worked 80 hours per week for 7 years having to resort to living in a tent due to housing shortages. Tapio also sells his machines to Fortune 50 companies.
Political career
In 2002, Tapio was the campaign director for Larry Diedrich's congressional bid in the 2002 U.S. House of Representatives election. Tapio was an early supporter of then-presidential candidate Donald Trump in 2015. He served as Donald Trump's South Dakota campaign director for the 2016 U.S. presidential race.In 2016, Tapio upset state representative Roger Solum in the South Dakota State Senate District 5 Republican primary. Tapio ran unopposed in the November 2016 general election. Tapio was sworn into the South Dakota Senate on January 10, 2017.