Gov. Kristi Noem’s (R) South Dakota has reported just four new cases of the Chinese coronavirus per 100,000 people in the last seven days — news which follows bitter backlash she received from the establishment media for refusing to take the blue state approach and lock down her state.

As of June 21, the Mount Rushmore state reported four new cases of the virus per 100,000 people.

“For context, at its peak, South Dakota saw more than 160 new cases per 100,000 people a day. It’s now logging 4 new cases per capita over the last week,” according to Axios.

Much like Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R), Noem faced scrutiny from the radical left for refusing to implement stringent lockdown orders in her state, prioritizing personal freedom while other states issued sweeping mask mandates and stay-at-home orders.

“I really think it’s about control,” Noem said during a February on the Ingraham Angle. “They have used for the last year fear to control people. And in South Dakota, we just took a very different path.”

“We knew the science told us we couldn’t stop the virus,” she continued. “We could slow it down and protect people who might be vulnerable and make sure we had enough hospital capacity to take care of those who would need it.”

As Breitbart News detailed:

But Noem explained that the state tried to strike a delicate balance because allowing people to take care of their families and “still put food on the table” had to remain a top priority as well. That idea is something Democrats — whether knowingly or unknowingly — have also acknowledged, merely by recognizing the existence of the economic crisis caused by the pandemic-related orders and lockdowns, as well as the mental health crisis that has taken center stage as a result of the restrictions.

“So that was a unique approach that for our people really worked well. We did have tragedies and we did have losses, but we also got through it better than virtually every other state,” Noem told Ingraham while recognizing the ire her approach has drawn from the establishment media.

“And I think the media hates that because it really is a testimony to what Republicans believe in, what we conservatives believe in. We implemented what we always say we believe, and it showed that it really does work and bring more opportunities to families,” she said.

According to reports, there were 23 new coronavirus infections in South Dakota on Wednesday.