South Dakota Voter Guide

Key dates leading up to the 2026 elections:

• April 13, 8 p.m. CT, live televised "Republican Gubernatorial Candidate Forum" from SDPB in Sioux Falls
• April 17: Primary absentee voting begins
• April 27, 7:30 p.m. CT: The Dakota Scout and Forum Communications will host a live televised GOP governor candidate debate in front of an audience of subscribers at the Belbas Theater in the Washington Pavilion in Sioux Falls 
• May 18: Primary voter registration deadline
• June 2: Primary election (polls open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. local time)
• September, dates, times and locations to be determined: Televised town halls on SDPB before the general election
• Sept. 18: General election absentee voting begins
• Oct. 19: General election voter registration deadline
• Nov. 3: General election (polls are open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. local time)

To register to vote in South Dakota, you must:

1. Be a U.S. citizen
2. Live in South Dakota
3. Be at least 18 years old on or before next election
4. Not be serving a sentence for a felony
5. Not be judged mentally incompetent by a court

Every registered voter can vote in the November general election. But in a June primary election, a voter is given only the ballot for the party they're registered in, except for voters registered as an Independent or No Party Affiliation (NPA):

• The South Dakota Democratic Primary is open to registered Democrats and Independents/No Party Affiliation voters but not Republicans.
• The South Dakota Libertarian Primary is open to voters registered as Libertarian, Independent or No Party Affiliation.
• The South Dakota Republican Primary is open to only registered Republicans.

First check your current status on the Voter Information Portal that's provided by the Secretary of State and all 66 county auditors.

If you do need to register, you can do it at these places:

1. County auditor’s office
2. Driver’s license station
3. City finance offices
4. Public assistance agency, TANF or WIC
5. Department of Human Services offices that provide assistance to people with disabilities
6. Military recruitment offices
7. Download a registration form from the Secretary of State’s website

Here's an FAQ with helpful information and the location of all auditors.

1. To vote in person on Election Day, just go by your assigned polling place on your voter registration card between 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. local time. You may have to stand in line during busy times, but volunteers will walk you through the entire process.
2. Early voting is allowed at your county auditor's office during business hours starting 46 days before an election. Staff will help you with the process.
3. If you're going to be out of town on Election Day, you can submit an absentee ballot to your county auditor's office starting 46 days before an election.

Important! Regardless of how you vote, all voters must show proof of identification or sign a personal identification affidavit at their polling place. Approved forms of photo identification include:

• South Dakota driver's license or nondriver ID card
• U.S. government photo ID such as a passport
• U.S. Armed Forces ID
• Tribal photo ID
• Current student photo identification card from a South Dakota high school or South Dakota accredited institution of higher education

Like all 50 states, South Dakota elects two U.S. senators. Here are the candidates:

Julian Beaudion (D)

Justin McNeal (R)

*Sen. Mike Rounds (R)

South Dakota is allocated one congressional seat in the U.S. House of Representatives. Here are the candidates:

James Bialota Jr. (R)

Nicole Gronli (D)

Marty Jackley (R)

South Dakota's governor leads the executive branch of state government in Pierre. Independent candidates are chosen in the November general election, but Democratic and Republican candidates are chosen in the primary election in June. Here are the candidates:

Dan Ahlers (D)

Toby Doeden (R)

Jon Hansen (R)

Dusty Johnson (R)

*Gov. Larry Rhoden (R)

While voters elect candidates for governor in the primary, political parties choose other state executive candidates at conventions. Here are the offices that have elections in 2026:

Attorney general

Auditor

Commissioner of School and Public Lands

Lieutenant governor

Public Utilities Commission

Secretary of state

Treasurer

The South Dakota Legislature is comprised of 105 lawmakers from 35 legislative districts, each of which has one senator and two representatives. Find out which district you live in and also the list of candidates.

The following "yes/no" ballot measures have been approved for the Nov. 3 general election ballot:

• Constitutional Amendment I asks whether Medicaid expansion in the state should be conditioned on the federal government funding at least 90% of the program's cost.
• Constitutional Amendment J asks whether to affirm that "(an) individual who is not a citizen of the United States is disqualified from voting in any election or upon any question submitted to the voters of this state."
• Constitutional Amendment K asks whether the state should establish a trust fund for unclaimed property.
• Constitutional Amendment L asks whether amendments to the state constitution should require a 60% majority by voters.

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