The story and graphics have been updated to reflect results.
PIERRE, S.D. – GOP candidates for the U.S. Senate and U.S. House of Representatives took early, commanding leads Tuesday in South Dakota's primary election, while the vote was largely split among the four Republicans vying for governor.
With 142 of 686 precincts reporting, incumbent U.S. Sen. Mike Rounds appeared headed for a third, six-year term and Attorney General Marty Jackley was poised to become the state's new member of Congress.
The GOP race for governor was much less clear, with four split votes ranging from 20% to 29%.
If businessman Toby Doeden, state House Speaker Jon Hansen, U.S. Rep. Dusty Johnson or Gov. Larry Rhoden doesn't receive 35% of the vote in the Republican primary, the top two vote-getters will meet in a runoff election on July 28. The winner will meet Democratic candidate Dan Ahlers in the Nov. 3 general election nomination.
Because of a law change that put many local contests on Tuesday's ballot, the Republican and Democratic primaries included races for sheriff, county auditor, school board and other offices as well as nonpartisan contests like mayor and city council.
Molly Wetsch
Courtney Bahe took a break from her job in the Meade County Assessor’s Office in Sturgis near lunchtime on Tuesday to cast her votes in the GOP primary.
Bahe, 36, said she voted for Larry Rhoden for governor because he’s done “a decent job” and because she didn’t care much for the other three candidates.
“He (Rhoden) is generally fairly honest in what he’s doing, and he doesn’t try to misrepresent himself,” said Bahe, who's from Vale, which is 20 miles north of Sturgis and 45 miles west of Rhoden's hometown of Union Center.
Bahe, who has been a registered Republican since she became eligible to vote 18 years ago, also cast votes for Jackley for House and Rounds for Senate.
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The governor, House and Senate races only had Republican primaries because candidates from other parties did not have competition.
Dave Dahl from Pierre said he backed Rhoden in the governor’s race. “He’s done a good enough job for the time he’s been in office.”
Frank Turner, 31, a communications professional for the South Dakota Rural Electric Association, said he voted for Johnson at his polling place in the capital city.
“I do a lot of trips to DC for legislative conferences. I know Dusty Johnson to be someone who is charismatic but also clearly has a mind and a drive when it comes to public office. He served on the PUC (Public Utilities Commission) for a long time as well, so him coming out in support of data centers is something I appreciated,” Turner said.
“There’s a bunch of misinformation out there when it comes to their water usage. These systems pull in thousands and thousands of dollars in tax revenue.”
Justin McNeal of Rapid City is challenging Rounds in the U.S. Senate race. The winner will meet Democrat Julian Beaudion and Independent Brian Bengs in the Nov. 3 general election.
Jackley is being challenged by James Bialota Jr. of Piedmont. The winner will meet Democrat Nicole Gronli in the Nov. 3 general election.
Did his homework; negative ads
Jackley earned the vote of Caleb Benson, who cast his primary votes just west of Rapid City, in Summerset. The college student educated himself about the election by talking with family, watching television advertisements and reading about candidates online.
Benson, 22, also voted for Rhoden for governor and Rounds for Senate.
“I like that he (Rhoden) was a rancher and service member, and that goes towards having good South Dakota values,” said Benson, who is studying communications at Black Hills State University in nearby Spearfish.
Benson said Rounds has represented South Dakota’s interests well in the Senate, and Jackley has the experience to perform well in Congress.
The negative tone of the gubernatorial race was a factor for at least one Pierre voter, a young woman who didn't want to be identified due to her employment at the state Capitol.
She told News Watch she left her choice for governor blank because of frustration at the slew of ads that have been released during the campaign.
“I wish they would put as much money as they did for the text messages, the spam calls and the junk mail towards something actually good. It was insane,” she said.
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Reporters Bart Pfankuch and Molly Wetsch contributed to this story. Contact politics and statehouse reporter Alexander Rifaat: 605-736-4396/alexander.rifaat@sdnewswatch.org.
