WASHINGTON (AP) — The tug-of-war over the South Dakota Republican Party's partisan identity continues in Tuesday's election, with district-level primaries the main event.
South Dakota is best known for Republican Gov. Kristi Noem's unapologetic approach to politics and the endorsement of former President Donald Trump, but her brand has not been widespread across the state party. John ToonSen. Joe Biden, whose name is frequently mentioned as the next Republican Senate Majority Leader, was elected to a fourth term in 2022 without President Trump's support. Mike Lowndes The former president called Trump a “nasty guy” when he said he lost the 2020 election. Dusty Johnsonis the state's only representative in the U.S. House of Representatives and chairs the Main Street Caucus, whose members describe themselves as “pragmatic conservatives.”
Voters on Tuesday won't have a chance to take a stance on Trump, who was convicted in New York of falsifying business records to hide hush payments to pornography actors and trying to illegally influence the 2016 election. Because no one challenged Trump for the Republican nomination, the state followed standard procedure for uncontested elections by removing the presidential contest from the ballot. But voters will have a chance to decide what the Republican majority in the state legislature will look like.
There are only two Democratic primaries, for president and state senate, but all 44 other races are Republican primaries. In the 34th District, Jason Green is running as a “voice of reason” against Tuffy Howard, who is challenging Johnson from the right in the 2022 primary. Republican state assemblywoman Trish Radnor is also advertising as a “voice of common sense.” Radnor is in a crowded field, with the primary field also including a conservative talk radio host who quoted former Soviet leader Joseph Stalin on his campaign website.
Even if Trump isn't on the ballot, his influence looms: Voters in several counties will decide whether to count votes by hand rather than using ballot-counting machines, an effort backed by a group that has challenged the state Senate majority leader.
Here's what you can expect:
Primary Election Day
South Dakota's primary election is on Tuesday. Polls close at 7pm local time across two time zones. Results won't be announced until the last polls in the Mountain Time Zone close at 9pm ET.
Voting Content
South Dakota is divided into 35 districts, each of which elects one state senator and two state representatives. But because only contested races appear on the primary ballot in South Dakota, there are only 45 state representative races on Tuesday's ballot. Johnson is running unopposed for the state's only House seat.
Most districts holding primaries will send two candidates from Tuesday's primary ballot to the general election in November.
On the presidential ballot, Democrats will choose between President Joe Biden and three other candidates — Dean Phillips, Marianne Williamson and Armando Pérez Serrato — with no “independent” or write-in ballot option.
Who will vote?
The state's Republican Party allows only Republican voters to participate in its primary election, while the Democratic Party opens it to registered Democrats, as well as independents and unaffiliated voters.
In the general election, voters will decide whether to revamp the primary election process, replacing the current system with a nonpartisan primary in which the top two vote-getters, regardless of party, will qualify to run in the general election.
Delegation assignment rules
South Dakota's 16 Democratic delegates are allocated according to standard national party rules. The four statewide delegates are allocated proportionally to the statewide vote, as are the two PLEO delegates (“Party Chairs and Elected Officials”). Because South Dakota has only one district, the 10 district-level delegates are also allocated proportionally to the statewide vote. Candidates must receive at least 15% of the statewide vote to become a statewide delegate, and at least 15% of the district vote to become a district delegate.
The Republican presidential primary is up for grabs for 29 delegates, but because the election takes place within 45 days of the Republican National Convention, they're not tied to any particular candidate. State party chairman John Wieck told The Associated Press that while the 29 delegates aren't technically tied, “there's no question who the next president is going to be,” referring to Trump.
Decision
The majority of South Dakota's votes come from Minnehaha County, which includes Sioux Falls, but most of Tuesday's elections are in statewide races for the state House and state Senate.
In Pennington County, where Rapid City is located, outgoing Senate Deputy Majority Leader Mike Diedrich has endorsed Jason Green to replace him in the 34th District. In the 8th District, Majority Leader Casey Crabtree will face off against Rick Weible, who is also in the 8th District, which spans four counties along the state's eastern border.
The 8th District is also holding a primary election for state Representative John Mills, whose term limits have expired. Incumbent Tim Reich is facing off against former Lake County Sheriff Tim Walberg and Matt Wagner, of Volga, Brookings County.
The only Democratic primary in the state Legislature is for state senator in the 27th Legislative District, which includes the Pine Ridge Reservation and the Oglala Sioux Tribe. Incumbent Democrat Red Dawn Foster, who is of Navajo and Oglala Lakota descent, is facing off against Gerald Cournoyer, also of the Oglala Sioux Tribe.
AP does not make predictions and will only announce a winner if it determines there is no scenario in which a trailing candidate could close the gap. If the election result is not finalized, AP will continue to cover newsworthy developments, such as a candidate conceding or claiming victory. When we do, we will make it clear that we have not yet announced a winner and explain why.
A recount is automatically held in the case of a tie, except in school and town elections. In parliamentary and local elections, candidates can request a recount if the difference in votes is 2% or less of the total votes cast.
What is the turnout and early voting like?
As of May 1, there were 666,596 registered voters in South Dakota. Of those, 22% were Democrats and 46% were Republicans.
In the 2022 Republican Senate primary, turnout was 18% out of 645,384 registered voters. In the 2020 Democratic presidential primary, turnout was 9% out of 609,043 registered voters. That year, about 20% of all primary votes were cast before Election Day.
How long does vote counting usually take?
In the 2022 Republican Senate Primary, the Associated Press first reported results at 9:02 PM ET, two minutes after the polls closed. Election night counting finished at 3:26 AM ET, with approximately 92% of the total votes counted.
Have you arrived yet?
As of Tuesday, there were 41 days until the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee, 76 days until the Democratic National Convention in Chicago and 154 days until the general election in November.
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