Primary elections in South Dakota
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Primary elections allow voters to determine which candidates compete in the general election and can be nonpartisan or partisan. In partisan primaries, voters choose the candidates they prefer for a political party to nominate in the general election.
The laws governing primary elections vary from state to state and can even vary within states by locality and political party. For example, only registered party members are allowed to vote inclosed primaries, while registered party members and unaffiliated voters are allowed to vote insemi-closed primaries, and all voters are allowed to vote inopen primaries.
Primary elections also vary by the way their outcomes are determined.Majority systems require the winning candidate to receive at least fifty percent of the votes cast, whileplurality systems do not. Intop-two primaries,top-four primaries, andblanket primaries, all candidates are listed on the same ballot, regardless of partisan affiliation.
See the sections below for general information on the use of primary elections in the United States and specific information on the types of primaries held in South Dakota:
- BackgroundThe different types of primary election participation models used in the United States, and details about methods to determine the outcomes of primaries.Read more
- Primary election systems used in South DakotaPrimary election systems used in South Dakota, including primaries for congressional and state-level offices.Read more
- State legislation and ballot measuresState legislation and ballot measures relevant to primary election policy in South Dakota.Read more
Background
In general, there are two broad criteria by which primary elections can vary from jurisdiction to jurisdiction:
1.Rules of participation: In jurisdictions that conduct partisan primaries, who can vote in a party's primary? Is participation limited to registered party members, or can other eligible voters (such as unaffiliated voters or voters belonging to other parties) participate? In general, there are three basic types of primary election participation models:open primaries,closed primaries, andsemi-closed primaries. Several states also use atop-two primary or a variant of that system.
- Inclosed primaries only registered party members are allowed to vote.
- Insemi-closed primaries, registered party members and unaffiliated voters are allowed to vote.
- Inopen primaries, all voters are allowed to vote.
- Intop-two primaries,top-four primaries, andblanket primaries, all candidates are listed on the same ballot, regardless of partisan affiliation and voters may vote for candidates from more than one party.
2.Vote requirements: What share of the total votes cast does a candidate have to receive in order to advance to the general election? Methods for determining primary election outcomes includeplurality voting systems ansmajority voting systems. Two states, California and Washington, usetop-two primaries, while one, Alaska, uses atop-four primary. Both are plurality systems. Maine useranked-choice voting for some primaries, which is a majority system.
Primary election systems used in South Dakota
Congressional and state-level elections
South Dakota law gives parties discretion to decide whether unaffiliated voters who may vote in their primary. South Dakota law says: "No person may vote a party ballot at any primary election unless the person is registered as a member of that political party in the precinct in which the person seeks to vote. Any political party in its constitution or bylaws may allow for participation in the party's primary elections by any person who is registered to vote with no party affiliation."[1]
As of September 2025, the Democratic Party held a semi-closed primary, where unaffiliated voters could participate, and the Republican Party held a closed primary, where only registered party members could participate.
In South Dakota, winners in primary contests are generally determined by plurality vote. In contests for the United States Senate and House of Representatives, as well as governor, winners must receive at least 35 percent of the vote. If no candidate receives 35 percent of the vote, the top two candidates move to a runoff election.[2]
In 23 states, at least one political party utilizes closed primaries to nominate partisan candidates for congressional and state-level (e.g. state legislators, governors, etc.) offices. In 19 states, at least one party utilizes open primaries to nominate partisan candidates for these offices. In 12 states, at least one party utilizes semi-closed primaries. In 5 states, top-two primaries or a variation are used.[3] These state primaries are a separate entity and are not included in the totals for open, closed, or semi-closed primaries.
The table below lists South Dakota offices for which parties must conduct primary elections to nominate their candidates.
| Office | Number of seats |
|---|---|
| Governor of South Dakota | 1 |
| State legislators | 105 |
| United States Senators | 2 |
| United States Representatives | 1 |
| Local officials | Varies by municipality |
State legislation and ballot measures
Recent legislation related to primary elections in South Dakota
The table below lists bills related to primary elections that have been introduced during (or carried over to) the current legislative session in South Dakota. The following information is included for each bill:
- State
- Bill number
- Official bill name or caption
- Most recent action date
- Legislative status
- Sponsor party
- Topics dealt with by the bill
Bills are organized by most recent action. The table displays up to 100 results. To view more bills, use the arrows in the upper-right corner. Clicking on a bill will open its page onBallotpedia's Election Administration Legislation Tracker, which includes bill details and a summary.
Primary systems ballot measures
Since 2017, Ballotpedia has tracked the following ballot measure(s) relating to primary elections in South Dakota.
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See also
- Election policy in South Dakota
- Electoral systems in South Dakota
- Voting in South Dakota
- Primary election
External links
Footnotes
- ↑South Dakota Legislature Legislative Research Council, "S.D. Codified Laws Ann. § 12–6–26," accessed September 16, 2025
- ↑South Dakota Legislature Legislative Research Council, "S.D. Codified Laws Ann. § 12-6-51.1," accessed September 16, 2025
- ↑Top-two primary systems, such as those utilized inCalifornia,Nebraska, andWashington, and variations of those systems, such as thetop-four system used inAlaska and themajority-vote system used inLouisiana, are sometimes classified as open primary systems because voter participation in such primaries is not tied to partisan affiliation. For the purposes of this article, these primaries are considered to be a separate entity. For more information about top-two primaries and their variations, seethis article.
