South Dakota Voter Guide
Details on how to register and vote and what's on the ballot in the June 4 primary election.
The process of casting and counting votes in South Dakota and U.S. elections has become a major point of discussion. Credible information can be hard to find. This guide seeks to help as a resource leading up to the Nov. 5 general election.
Sources for this guide include the South Dakota Secretary of State's office and original reporting. It only includes information on statewide and legislative races. For local contests, consult your county auditor's website or local media outlet.
Your voice matters
South Dakota News Watch wants to hear not just from the candidates but from the voters. What questions need to be asked of those who seek to lead our state? You can review and submit the form below to highlight issues you consider most critical heading into the 2024 legislative and statewide elections.
Key election dates
Here are key dates for 2024:
- Sept. 20: Absentee voting begins (see your ballot)
- Oct. 21: Voter registration deadline (learn how to register)
- Nov. 5: General election
Where do I vote?
Find your polling place by visiting the Voter Information Portal. Your polling place is also listed on the voter acknowledgment notice you received from your county auditor after you registered.
When are the polls open in South Dakota?
Polls are open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. local time on Election Day.
What do I need to bring to vote?
All voters who appear at a polling place must show proof of identification. 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
- Current student photo identification card from a South Dakota high school or South Dakota accredited institution of higher education
- Tribal photo ID
If you do not have a photo ID, you can sign a personal identification affidavit and will still be allowed to vote a regular ballot.
Who are the candidates?
The list below includes statewide and legislative offices that will be contested in the Nov. 5 general election. Candidates are listed in alphabetical order by last name. Party affiliations are Republican (R), Democratic (D), Independent (I) and Libertarian (I). Incumbents are noted with an asterisk (*).
U.S. Representative
*Dusty Johnson (R)
Sheryl Johnson (D)
Public Utilities Commissioner
*Kristie Fiegen (R)
A. Gideon Oakes (L)
Forrest Wilson (D)
South Dakota Legislature
Here is a map of South Dakota's 35 legislative districts. To find out which district you vote in, click the dark link below.
Here are legislative candidates for South Dakota's 35 legislative districts, each which of has one senator and two representatives. Some candidates are unopposed.
District 1 Senate
*Mike Rohl (R)
District 1 House
Josh Dennert (L)
Tamara Lesnar (L)
Logan Manhart (R)
Steven McCleerey (D)
Christopher Reder (R)
District 2 Senate
*Steve Kolbeck (R)
District 2 House
*David Kull (R)
*John Sjaarda (R)
Stu Whitney
District 3 Senate
Carl Perry (R)
District 3 House
Al Novstrup (R)
Erin Rudner (D)
*Brandei Schaefbauer (R)
District 4 Senate
Stephanie Sauder (R)
District 4 House
Dylan Jordan (R)
Kent Roe (R)
District 5 Senate
Glen Vilhauer (R)
District 5 House
Diane Drake (D)
Josephine Garcia (R)
Amy Rambow (D)
Matt Roby (R)
District 6 Senate
Ernie Otten (R)
District 6 House
*Aaron Aylward (R)
Garret Campbell (D)
Herman Otten (R)
Stu Whitney
District 7 Senate
*Tim Reed (R)
District 7 House
*Roger DeGroot (R)
*Mellissa Heermann (R)
District 8 Senate
*Casey Crabtree (R)
District 8 House
*Tim Reisch (R)
Tim Walburg (R)
Greg Zimmerman (L)
District 9 Senate
Joy Hohn (R)
District 9 House
Beverly Froslie Johnson (D)
Tesa Schwans (R)
*Bethany Soye (R)
District 10 Senate
*Liz Larson (D)
District 10 House
Bobbi Andera (R)
*Erin Healy (D)
*Kameron Nelson (D)
District 11 Senate
Steve Natz (D)
Chris Karr (R)
District 11 House
Aaron Matson (D)
Sonja Mentzer (D)
*Brian Mulder (R)
Keri Weems (R)
Stu Whitney
District 12 Senate
*Arch Beal (R)
Clay Hoffman (D)
District 12 House
JR Anderson (D)
*Amber Arlint (R)
*Greg Jamison (R)
Erin Royer (D)
District 13 Senate
Sue Peterson (R)
Ali Rae Horstead (D)
District 13 House
John Hughes (R)
*Tony Venhuizen (R)
District 14 Senate
Sandra Henry (D)
*Larry Zikmund (R)
District 14 House
Keith Block (D)
Tony Kayser (R)
B.J. Motley (D)
*Taylor Rehfeldt (R)
District 15 Senate
Brenda Lawrence (R)
Jamie Smith (D)
District 15 House
Brad Lindwurm (R)
Erik Muckey (D)
Joni Tschetter (R)
*Kadyn Wittman (D)
District 16 Senate
Kevin Jensen (R)
District 16 House
*Karla Lems (R)
Matthew Carl Ness (D)
Richard Vasgaard (R)
District 17 Senate
*Sydney Davis (R)
District 17 House
*Chris Kassin (R)
Ray Ring (D)
*Bill Shorma (R)
District 18 Senate
Sarah Carda (D)
Lauren Nelson (R)
District 18 House
*Julie Auch (R)
Paul Harens (D)
Sarah Mechtenberg (D)
*Mike Stevens (R)
District 19 Senate
Michael Miller (L)
*Kyle Schoenfish (R)
District 19 House
*Jessica Bahmuller (R)
*Drew Peterson (R)
District 20 Senate
Paul Miskimins (R)
Gary Steichen (D)
Stu Whitney
District 20 House
Jeff Bathke (R)
*Ben Krohmer (R)
John Schmidt (D)
District 21 Senate
Mykala Voita (R)
Dan Anderson (D)
District 21 House
Jim Halverson (R)
*Marty Overweg (R)
District 22 Senate
*David Wheeler (R)
Jim Schmidt (D)
District 22 House
Lana Greenfield (R)
Kevin Van Diepen (R)
District 23 Senate
Mark Lapka (R)
District 23 House
Spencer Gosch (R)
*Scott Moore (R)
District 24 Senate
*Jim Mehlhaff (R)
District 24 House
*Will Mortenson (R)
*Mike Weisgram (R)
District 25 Senate
*Tom Pischke (R)
Brian Wirth (D)
District 25 House
*Jon Hansen (R)
Les Heinemann (R)
District 26 Senate
*Shawn Bordeaux (D)
Tamara Grove (R)
District 26A House
*Eric Emery (D)
Ron Frederick (R)
William Lafferty (I)
District 26B House
*Rebecca Reimer (R)
District 27 Senate
*Red Dawn Foster (D)
Anthony Kathol (R)
District 27 House
*Liz May (R)
Elsie Meeks (D)
*Peri Pourier (D)
Bart Pfankuch
District 28 Senate
Shane Farlee (I)
Sam Marty (R)
Dean Schrempp (D)
District 28A House
Jana Hunt (R)
Carl Petersen (D)
District 28B House
Travis Ismay (R)
District 29 Senate
John Carley (R)
District 29 House
Terri Jorgenson (R)
Kathy Rice (R)
District 30 Senate
Amber Hulse (R)
Bret Swanson (D)
District 30 House
Tim Goodwin (R)
*Trish Ladner (R)
Susan Scheirbeck (D)
District 31 Senate
*Randy Deibert (R)
District 31 House
*Mary Fitzgerald (R)
Victoria Greenlee (I)
Shana McVickers (I)
*Scott Odenbach (R)
District 32 Senate
*Helene Duhamel (R)
Karen McNeal (I)
District 32 House
*Steve Duffy (R)
Brook Kaufman (R)
Nicole Uhre-Balk (D)
District 33 Senate
Curt Voigt (R)
District 33 House
*Phil Jensen (R)
*Curt Massie (R)
District 34 Senate
Taffy Howard (R)
Michael Calabrese (D)
District 34 House
Heather Baxter (R)
*Mike Derby (R)
District 35 Senate
Greg Blanc (R)
District 35 House
Tina Mulally (R)
Tony Randolph (R)
Pat Cromwell (D)
Jason Lind (D)
Constitutional amendments
Abortion rights (Amendment G)
If passed, this measure would enshrine the right to abortion in the South Dakota Constitution and supersede a 2005 state trigger law that took effect when Roe vs. Wade was overturned. Current state law makes it a Class 6 felony for anyone “who administers to any pregnant female or prescribes or procures for any pregnant female” a means for an abortion, except to save the life of the mother.
This amendment prevents the state from regulating abortion during the first trimester (1 to 13 weeks). During the second trimester (14 to 26 weeks), the state could regulate “the abortion decision and its effectuation only in ways that are reasonably related to the physical health of the pregnant woman.” After the end of the second trimester, abortion could be regulated or prohibited except to preserve “the life or health” of the mother.
Stu Whitney
Rep. Jon Hansen, who is vice president of South Dakota Right to Life and co-chair of the Sioux Falls-based Life Defense Fund, has criticized the wording of the proposed amendment, saying it’s “far more extreme than Roe v. Wade itself.”
Dakotans for Health co-founder Rick Weiland and others have pushed back on that statement by saying the amendment uses the same trimester framework as Roe, the landmark 1973 ruling in which the Supreme Court held that the Constitution protected a woman’s right to an abortion prior to the viability of the fetus.
“The proposed amendment is very closely aligned with the original Roe v. Wade framework,” Hannah Haksgaard, a professor at the University of South Dakota Knudson School of Law, told News Watch. “The language mimics the trimester framework of Roe v. Wade and nothing in this amendment indicates any abortion rights more extreme than that.”
Life Defense Fund's lawsuit aimed at preventing the measure from reaching the ballot was dismissed by a state circuit judge, a ruling that the group appealed to the South Dakota Supreme Court. The appeal is still pending.
Attorney General's Ballot Statement is here.
Top-two open primaries (Amendment H)
Approval of this amendment would establish “top-two” primaries for governor, Congress and state legislative and county races rather than having parties hold separate primary contests.
The theory is that open primaries, rather than incentivizing candidates from taking extreme positions to win a partisan primary, will help lower the volume to produce officeholders more reflective of the general electorate. This comes at a time when far-right factions such as the South Dakota Freedom Caucus have gained more traction within the Republican ranks.
Stu Whitney
All registered voters would be eligible to weigh in on which candidates advance to the general election. Currently, Independent voters in South Dakota can vote in Democratic primaries but not Republican contests.
Freedom Caucus chairman Aaron Aylward, a state representative from Harrisburg, told News Watch that the proposal would essentially create "two general elections in South Dakota" and thus was unnecessary.
The only other notable opposition so far has come from South Dakota Republican Party chair John Wiik and U.S. Sen. Mike Rounds, who told News Watch in a March 1 statement that “our current primary system has served us well."
Attorney General's Ballot Statement is here.
Medicaid work requirement (Amendment F)
Legislators passed Senate Joint Resolution 501 during the 2024 session, an effort to amend the constitution to impose work requirements for Medicaid eligibility.
Supporters want to add a work requirement for adults who are not physically or mentally disabled but who are eligible for Medicaid under the expansion of the government-sponsored program that South Dakota voters approved in 2022. The move would still need to be approved by the federal government.
Opponents frame it as a rebuke of the will of voters and cite the state's 2.1% unemployment rate, which ranks second-lowest in the nation. "Who is on Medicaid and is not working? I can answer that for you, it’s the poorest of the poor,” said Democratic Rep. Kadyn Wittman of Sioux Falls.
Attorney General's Ballot Statement is here.
References to government officials (Amendment E)
This is a legislative resolution from the 2023 session that proposes to change outdated male-only references to South Dakota’s governor and other officials in the state constitution and statutes. It's a procedural update in language that shouldn't draw too much opposition, if any.
Attorney General's Ballot Statement is here.
Initiated measures
Grocery/consumables tax repeal (IM 28)
Dakotans for Health sponsored this measure to prohibit the state from collecting sales tax on "anything sold for human consumption, except alcoholic beverages and prepared food."
A statewide poll in November 2023 co-sponsored by South Dakota News Watch showed that 61% of registered voters support the proposal, which would eliminate the 4.2% state sales tax on groceries.
A coalition called South Dakotans Against a State Income Tax has criticized the measure as broader than just groceries. They say it could cause a budget crunch by preventing the state from collecting sales tax on “consumable” items such as tobacco, toothpaste and toilet paper.
“This is not a food tax repeal – it’s a consumables tax repeal,” said South Dakota Retailers Association executive director Nathan Sanderson, who is helping to spearhead the opposition.
The measure states that it will not impact the taxing authority of municipalities, which collect 2% on groceries on top of the state tax rate.
But Sanderson cites a state law that says cities and towns can charge a sales tax if the tax "conforms in all respects to the state tax ... with the exception of the rate," which would not be the case if the state food tax is repealed.
“Cities and towns can only tax the same items as the state,” said Sanderson. “So despite the language in IM 28, if the state cannot charge a tax on ‘anything for human consumption,’ neither can a municipality.”
Attorney General Marty Jackley's ballot explanation notes that “judicial or legislative clarification of the measure will be necessary.” Since it’s an initiative measure and not a constitutional amendment, it’s reasonable to assume that state legislators will address it during the 2025 legislative session if it passes.
Repealing the grocery tax was staunchly opposed in 2024 by the Republican-dominated Legislature, which approved a cut in the state’s general sales tax rate from 4.5% to 4.2% during the 2023 session that's due to expire in 2027.
Stu Whitney
The fiscal note for the grocery tax measure indicates it could reduce annual state sales tax receipts by $124 million. Opponents said that could stress the state's budget when combined with the rate change on general sales tax.
Weiland notes that Gov. Kristi Noem promised a grocery tax cut as part of her 2022 re-election campaign, a plan ultimately rejected by lawmakers. The governor took the rare step of testifying for her grocery tax repeal bill during the 2023 session, insisting that the budget was strong enough to absorb lost revenue and that voters wanted the tax repealed.
“She’s taken a lot of wind out of the sails of the opposition,” said Weiland. “She has made it clear that this will not be a financial burden and that it's something that the people want.”
Jim Terwilliger, Noem’s top budget official as commissioner of the Bureau of Finance and Management, told News Watch that Noem doesn’t support the ballot initiative because of concerns about the wording.
He added that the governor “still believes a repeal of the grocery tax is the best tax relief for South Dakota families if it is done in a responsible manner.”
Attorney General's Ballot Statement is here.
Recreational marijuana (IM 29)
If successful, this measure would allow people 21 and older to "possess, grow, ingest, and distribute marijuana or marijuana paraphernalia." Possession would be allowed up to 2 ounces in a form other than marijuana concentrate or other marijuana products.
Matthew Schweich, campaign director of South Dakotans for Better Marijuana Laws, said his group will have to grapple with possible voter fatigue on an issue put before South Dakota voters for a third consecutive statewide election.
In 2020, pro-legalization Amendment A passed with 54% of the vote, clearing the way for recreational marijuana to be implemented in the state. Medicinal pot was also approved by voters that year in an initiated measure.
Stu Whitney
Gov. Kristi Noem’s administration challenged the recreational marijuana amendment, saying it violated the state’s requirement that constitutional amendments deal with just one subject. That argument prevailed in a 4-1 decision at the South Dakota Supreme Court.
Supporters tried to pass recreational cannabis again in 2022, and South Dakotans rejected that effort, sending Initiated Measure 27 to defeat with 53% of voters against it.
A statewide poll of 500 registered voters in May showed that 52% of respondents are against Initiated Measure 29, compared to 42% who support it and 7% who are undecided.
Protecting South Dakota Kids, a campaign committee formed to fight recreational pot legalization in 2022, is opposing the effort again in 2024, said Rhonda Milstead, a former Republican state legislator who serves as the group's executive director.
“When it comes to our children, South Dakotans are fiercely protective,” Milstead said. “We say no to any group selling addiction for profit.”
Most experts characterize marijuana as a drug that can be used responsibly but also poses risks if abused, like alcohol and other intoxicants.
Attorney General's Ballot Statement is here.
Voter referendums
Carbon pipeline regulations (Referred Law 21)
A group called the South Dakota Property Rights and Local Control Alliance gathered enough valid signatures to place Referred Law 21 on the ballot.
That gives voters a chance to either keep or kill Senate Bill 201, which mandated payments from carbon pipeline companies at the county level per linear foot. It also codified minimum depth requirements, liability on pipeline operators for damages and disclosures of pipelines’ plume models, which analyze how carbon dioxide might spread in case of a rupture.
Jim Eschenbaum, who chairs the property rights group, contends that Referred Law 21 provides a basis for land to be accessed involuntarily through “eminent domain,” though the law does not address that issue.
Stu Whitney
Eminent domain involves taking private property for public use while requiring just compensation.
Eschenbaum's reasoning is that terms set forth in the law between pipeline companies and landowners make it easier for the three-member PUC as a state entity to supersede county zoning ordinances and setbacks, or for a judge to conclude that such action is within PUC authority.
Republican House Majority Leader Will Mortenson disputes that assertion and points out that eminent domain is not directly addressed in the legislation.
"If this pipeline comes, I understand that it would be good for ethanol, but that’s not enough," said Mortenson. "We need to make sure this is a good thing for every single farmer from the beginning of the route to the end of the route. And that's what Referred Law 21 does."
Attorney General's Ballot Statement is here.
This story was produced by South Dakota News Watch, an independent, nonprofit news organization. Read more in-depth stories at sdnewswatch.org and sign up for an email every few days to get stories as soon as they're published. Contact Stu Whitney at stu.whitney@sdnewswatch.org.
