Ballot access requirements for political candidates in South Dakota

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Note: This article is not intended to serve as an exhaustive guide to running for public office. Individuals should contact their state election agencies for further information.


In order to get on the ballot in South Dakota, a candidate for state or federal office must meet a variety of state-specific filing requirements and deadlines. These regulations, known as ballot access laws, determine whether a candidate or party will appear on an election ballot. These laws are set at the state level. A candidate must prepare to meet ballot access requirements well in advance of primaries, caucuses, and the general election.

There are three basic methods by which an individual may become a candidate for office in a state.

  1. An individual can seek the nomination of a state-recognized political party.
  2. An individual can run as an independent. Independent candidates often must petition in order to have their names printed on the general election ballot.
  3. An individual can run as a write-in candidate.

This article outlines the steps that prospective candidates for state-level and congressional office must take in order to run for office in South Dakota. For information about filing requirements for presidential candidates, see "Ballot access requirements for presidential candidates in South Dakota." Information about filing requirements for local-level offices is not available in this article (contact state election agencies for information about local candidate filing processes).

DocumentIcon.jpg See state election laws

Year-specific filing information

2024

U.S. Senate

For information on candidate ballot access requirements in South Dakota, click here.

U.S. House

The table below details filing requirements for U.S. House candidates in South Dakota in the 2024 election cycle. For additional information on candidate ballot access requirements in South Dakota, click here.

Filing requirements for U.S. House candidates, 2024
State Office Party Signatures required Filing fee Filing deadline Source
South Dakota U.S. House Ballot-qualified party 1% of all votes cast for the party's gubernatorial nominee in the last election N/A 3/26/2024 Source
South Dakota U.S. House Unaffiliated 1% of all votes cast governor in the last election N/A 4/30/2024 Source


For filing information from previous years, click "[Show more]" below.

Show more

2022

U.S. Senate

The table below details filing requirements for U.S. Senate candidates in South Dakota in the 2022 election cycle. For additional information on candidate ballot access requirements in South Dakota, click here.

Filing requirements for U.S. Senate candidates, 2022
State Office Party Signatures required Filing fee Filing deadline Source
South Dakota U.S. Senate Republican 1,730 N/A 3/29/2022 Source
South Dakota U.S. Senate Democratic 1,615 N/A 3/29/2022 Source
South Dakota U.S. Senate Libertarian 50 N/A 3/29/2022 Source
South Dakota U.S. Senate Unaffiliated 3,393 N/A 4/26/2022 Source

U.S. House

The table below details filing requirements for U.S. House candidates in South Dakota in the 2022 election cycle. For additional information on candidate ballot access requirements in South Dakota, click here.

Filing requirements for U.S. House candidates, 2022
State Office Party Signatures required Filing fee Filing deadline Source
South Dakota U.S. House Ballot-qualified party 1% of all votes cast for the party's gubernatorial nominee in 2018 N/A 3/29/2022 Source
South Dakota U.S. House Unaffiliated 1% of all votes cast governor in 2018 N/A 4/26/2022 Source

Governor

The table below details filing requirements for gubernatorial candidates in South Dakota in the 2022 election cycle. For additional information on candidate ballot access requirements in South Dakota, click here.

Filing requirements for gubernatorial candidates, 2022
State Office Party Signatures required Filing fee Filing deadline Source Notes
South Dakota Governor Democratic 1,615 N/A 3/29/2022 Source
South Dakota Governor Republican 1,730 N/A 3/29/2022 Source
South Dakota Governor Libertarian 50 N/A 3/29/2022 Source
South Dakota Governor Unaffiliated 3,393 N/A 4/26/2022 Source

For filing information from previous years, click "[Show more]" below. <ShowHideText>

Process to become a candidate

DocumentIcon.jpg See statutes: Title 19, Chapter 12-6, Title 19, Chapter 12-7 of South Dakota Codified Law

For primary candidates

A primary election candidate must file a petition no earlier than January 1 and no later than the last Tuesday of March at 5 p.m., prior to the primary election. The petition must contain the required signatures and a declaration of candidacy. The declaration of candidacy must be completed before the candidate collects signatures. The declaration must be completed in the presence of an authorized notary public. A petition for party office or partisan public office must be signed by no less than 1 percent of the party's total registered members in the applicable electoral district. For a state legislative candidate, the petition must be signed by the lesser of 50 voters or 1 percent of the party's total registered members in that district. Any state legislative candidate must be a resident of the district for which he or she is a candidate at the time he or she signs the declaration of candidacy.[1][2][3][4]

For independent candidates

Any candidate for nonjudicial public office who is not nominated by a primary election may be nominated as an independent candidate by filing with the South Dakota Secretary of State or county auditor. Filing must be completed no earlier than January 1 at 8:00 a.m. and no later than the last Tuesday of April at 5:00 p.m., prior to the election. An independent candidate's certificate of nomination must be signed by registered voters within the applicable district or political subdivision. The number of signatures required may not be less than 1 percent of the total combined vote cast for governor at the last certified gubernatorial election within the district or political subdivision. Registered party members cannot sign petitions for independent candidates. No petition or certificate of nomination may be circulated prior to January 1 of the year in which the election will be held. Primary election candidates are prohibited from filing as independent candidates for the same office in the same year. No candidate can file a certificate of nomination for an office for which he or she has been a candidate in the primary election of the same year. Any candidate for office in the state legislature must be a resident of the district for which he or she is a candidate.[4][5][6][7][8]

For write-in candidates

The relevant statutes do not stipulate that a candidate may run as a write-in candidate. Write-in candidates for president are expressly prohibited.[9]

Petition requirements

See also: Methods for signing candidate nominating petitions

DocumentIcon.jpg See statutes: South Dakota Codified Law Section 12-13-28, Section 12-6-8, Section 12-7-1.1

In some cases, candidates may need to obtain signatures via the petition process to gain access to the ballot. This section outlines the laws and regulations pertaining to petitions and circulators in South Dakota.

Circulation requirements

A petition circulator gathering signatures on behalf of a candidate in South Dakota must meet the following requirements:[10]

  1. must be 18 years old
  2. must be a South Dakota resident
  3. must personally witness each signature on the petition circulated
  4. must have the petition verified by a notary public after its circulation
  5. must state under oath that no statute regarding the petition circulation was knowingly violated
  6. must make a reasonable inquiry that determines each signer is a registered voter of the state and county indicated on the petition
  7. must not be paid or rewarded based on the number of signatures to the petition, though a circulator may be paid an hourly wage or salary

Election-related agencies

See also: State election agencies

South Dakota Secretary of State

Capitol Building
500 East Capitol Avenue, Suite 204
Pierre, South Dakota 57501-5070
Phone: 605-773-3537
Email:elections@state.sd.us
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Term limits

State executives

State Executive Officials
See also: State executives with term limits and States with gubernatorial term limits

The state executive term limits in South Dakota are as follows:

  • The governor may serve a total of two terms.
  • The comptroller may serve a total of two terms.
  • The lieutenant governor must wait four years and/or one full term before becoming eligible to serve again after serving two consecutive terms.
  • The secretary of state must wait four years and/or one full term before becoming eligible to serve again after serving two consecutive terms.
  • The attorney general must wait four years and/or one full term before becoming eligible to serve again after serving two consecutive terms.
  • The treasurer must wait four years and/or one full term before becoming eligible to serve again after serving two consecutive terms.
  • The auditor must wait four years and/or one full term before becoming eligible to serve again after serving two consecutive terms.

State legislators

See also: State legislatures with term limits

An individual can serve in the South Dakota State Legislature for four terms (eight years) in each of the two chambers, the South Dakota State Senate and the South Dakota House of Representatives.[11]

Congressional partisanship

Portal:Legislative Branch
See also: List of United States Representatives from South Dakota and List of United States Senators from South Dakota

Below is the current partisan breakdown of the congressional delegation from South Dakota.

Congressional Partisan Breakdown from South Dakota
Party U.S. Senate U.S. House Total
Democratic 0 0 0
Republican 2 1 3
Independent 0 0 0
Vacancies 0 0 0
Total 2 1 3

State legislative partisanship

Portal:State legislatures

Below is the current partisan breakdown of the state legislature of South Dakota.

South Dakota State Senate

Party As of January 2024
     Democratic Party 4
     Republican Party 30
     Other 0
     Vacancies 1
Total 35

South Dakota House of Representatives

Party As of January 2024
     Democratic Party 7
     Republican Party 62
     Other 0
     Vacancies 1
Total 70

Related legislation

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The embedded table below lists state bills affecting ballot access requirements for candidates introduced in South Dakota. The following information is included for each bill:

  • State
  • Bill number
  • Official name or caption
  • Most recent action date
  • Legislative status
  • Topics dealt with by the bill

Bills are organized alphabetically, first by state and then by bill number. To view additional results, use the arrows in the upper-right corner of the table. For more information about a particular bill, simply click the bill number. This will open a separate page with additional information.

Ballotpedia’s comprehensive Ballotpedia's Election Administration Legislation Tracker is the basis for this data. This user-friendly tracker covers thousands of election-related bills in state legislatures, and organizes them by topic with neutral, expert analysis from Ballotpedia’s election administration researchers.

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See also

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External links

Official state and federal links

Other information

Footnotes

  1. ↑ South Dakota Codified Law, "Title 12-6-4," accessed January 31, 2014
  2. ↑ South Dakota Secretary of State, "Circulating a Nominating Petition," accessed October 29, 2013
  3. ↑ South Dakota Codified Law, "Title 12-6-7," accessed January 31, 2014
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 South Dakota Codified Law, "Title 12-7-6," accessed February 4, 2014
  5. ↑ South Dakota Codified Law, "Title 12-7-1," accessed February 4, 2014
  6. ↑ South Dakota Codified Law, "Title 12-7-1," accessed February 4, 2014
  7. ↑ South Dakota Codified Law, "Title 12-7-1.1," accessed February 4, 2014
  8. ↑ South Dakota Codified Law, "Title 12-7-5," accessed February 4, 2014
  9. ↑ South Dakota Codified Law, "Title 12-20-21.2," accessed February 17, 2014
  10. ↑ South Dakota Secretary of State, "Circulating Nominating Petitions," accessed January 2, 2014
  11. ↑ The Council of State Governments, "State Legislative Branch," accessed October 28, 2013
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