Controversial South Dakota politician Kristi Noem has undergone quite the transformation throughout her political career, but especially since sucking up to Donald Trump in recent years. However, it seems Noem’s relationship with Donald Trump has helped land her a cushy cabinet position — should she successfully become Secretary of the Department of Homeland Security. As Noem has enmeshed herself further into Trump’s inner circle, she’s taken the same cues as some of the other Trump women by altering her appearance to fit a very specific mold. From Noem’s rumored plastic surgery to her obvious hair extensions, she’s been heavily updating her style.
After Noem rolled out a brutal hair transformation in the summer of 2024 that got the internet rumbling, it was enough to make anyone curious to go down memory lane. Noem has been in politics since 2006, and styles have certainly changed since then — even if Noem’s sense of personal taste has always felt a little bit behind the curve. Case in point: the hair she rocked in the 2010s was at least a decade behind the times.
Kristi Noem used to channel her inner Karen
Before she got hair extensions, Kristi Noem seemed to really prefer the infamous 2000s Kate Gosselin haircut, a style that more or less became synonymous with asking to speak to a manager. Though this photo was taken in 2012, the hairstyle was really popular before then. Luckily for Noem, she’s since updated her looks and locks. Her political policy, however, remains in the “Karen” territory.
As Governor of South Dakota, Noem eschewed all COVID protocols during the pandemic. She even sent South Dakota National Guard troops to actual border states to make a political point about how she feels about immigration. And don’t even bring up the whole Noem shooting her dog scandal. It seems she’ll fit right in with the current crew Donald Trump is assembling to aid him in the White House — although it will be funny to see if Noem and ex-Trump staffer Corey Lewandowski will end up in each other’s lives again. Only time will tell.
