For the U.S. federal judge, see George Theodore Mickelson. George Speaker Mickelson (January 31, 1941 – April 19, 1993) was an American politician from the U.S. state of South Dakota. Mickelson, a Republican, served as the 28th Governor of South Dakota from January 6, 1987 until his death in a plane crash in Dubuque, Iowa on April 19, 1993. His father, George T. Mickelson, was also a governor of South Dakota, serving from 1947 to 1951.