Kyle Peters: Meet Kristi Noem's Controversial, MAGA Son-In-Law

Think Kristi Noem is the only member of the fam to court controversy? Think again, because her son-in-law Kyle Peters is pretty controversial himself ... and not just because, y'know, dead animals. 

If you don't know anything about Kyle, a quick scroll through his Instagram is all it takes to know he's a hunting enthusiast. Amongst snaps with his wife — Kristi's makeup-challenged daughter Kassidy Noem Peters — and their three kids, his feed is filled with pics of him and his (gulp) trophies. And you better believe his mother-in-law's detractors have been quick to point out the parallels between him and the former secretary of Homeland Security. One picture shows three dead coyotes strung upside down alongside him and his daughter Addie Peters, along with the caption, "'Daddy, I don't like coyotes because they hurt our baby deer' Same here, baby girl, same here. Nice little Sunday morning with my sidekick." In response, many Instagram commenters called to mind the scandalous story of Kristi killing her own puppy, with one quipping, "Haha love of dog killing runs in the blood." Others pointed out that it was amusing Kyle was so concerned about deer when he seemed to enjoy killing them himself. "You mean the same deer you kill afterwards?" a critic asked. 

It's worth noting that Kyle and Kristi have bonded over their love of hunting (shocker), and the former governor has even posted gushy IG captions about how much she loves hunting with him. "I've never met someone so excited to take people hunting and work so hard to help them be successful — and get so excited for them! We have had the most fun on trips, enjoying horses, complaining about politics, and loving our little ones," she wrote. Complaining about politics isn't where they've left it, though. 

Kristi Noem isn't Kyle Peters' only connection to politics — he's a city councilman in South Dakota's City of Watertown. Speaking to The Dakota Scout ahead of his bid for that role in 2023, Kyle denied Kristi had anything to do with his decision. "I'm not running based on who my mother-in-law is, and this isn't a legacy thing. This is just me trying to do what's best for Watertown," he said. 

That may be the case, but again, politics isn't all he has in common with his wife's mom. In March 2026, Kyle made headlines on Kelo for allegedly "wrongfully competing and diverting business from A1 Development for years." Kyle previously worked for A1 Development, and his former employer accused him of taking advantage of "his position" to poach more than 10 of their clients. Making matters worse, A1 Development complained in their legal filings that Kyle had worked with a potential buyer for a piece of land ... despite not being licensed to do so. "Peters is not a licensed real estate agent yet kept this opportunity from A1 Development, which is a licensed brokerage firm perfectly suited to assist with such a purchase," they claimed. 

If "real Estate," "Noem," and "Peters" are ringing a bell, that's because Kyle's wife, Kassidy Noem Peters, faced a real estate scandal of her own in 2021. ICYMI, her registered residential appraiser license was denied, then granted after the director of the Appraiser Certification Program was called in for a meeting with Kassidy's mother. Kassidy also made headlines in 2026 for working as a real estate agent sans a broker associate's license. His mother-in-law may not be the reason Kyle is in politics, but he's certainly learned from Kristi's scandalous track record.