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Early voting booths are set up at the Minnehaha County administration building in Sioux Falls ahead of the June 2026 South Dakota primary election. South Dakota Searchlight photo by Makenzie Huber.
Early and absentee voting for the June 2 primary election has started in many South Dakota counties, though some remain in a holding pattern.
The delay was caused by the need to finalize, proof and print ballots.
Davison County, which includes Mitchell, was one of the first in the state to begin early voting. That happened about an hour after receiving ballots on Wednesday, April 22, said Auditor Kathy Wingert.
“Despite this rough start to the election season, I’m confident in how the election will run. It should be smooth sailing from here,” Wingert said.
In Brown County, Deputy Auditor and Elections Coordinator Stephanie Jacobson said that once ballots arrived, she needed time to review the 17 variations to make sure they were correct before starting early voting. That happened and voting began Monday, April 27.
For more information about voting early in Brown County, visit the Brown County, SD Auditor’s Office Facebook page.
Minnehaha, Lincoln and Pennington County auditors said on Wednesday that they had received ballots. Minnehaha plans to open early voting at noon on Thursday, April 23, while Lincoln and Pennington counties plan to begin early voting as soon as the office opens for the day Thursday.
Early voting was supposed to start Friday, April 17. It was delayed due in part to a quirk of the calendar that created an unusually short window between a legal filing deadline for candidate nominating petitions — the last Tuesday in March, which was March 31 this year, the fifth of five Tuesdays in the month — and the start of ballot printing and early voting. The situation left county auditors waiting for the state to certify candidates, which delayed ballot printing as the intended start of early voting approached.
Earlier this year, state lawmakers declined to apply a fix for the primary election sought by county auditors that would have moved candidate filing deadlines earlier. Some legislators expressed concerns about changing the laws governing a process that was already underway, as prospective candidates were gathering the required number of signatures from registered voters to earn a spot on the ballot. The deadline change was ultimately approved for future elections, but not for the June 2 primary.
The staggered rollout of early voting has left voters with unequal access and has caused widespread confusion.
Jill Jackson said she attempted to vote on Monday, April 20 in Sioux Falls during her day off of work but was turned away.
“I just hope things aren’t getting messed up,” she said.
Jackson, who works part-time, plans to vote early on her next day off from work.
Other counties are waiting to receive their ballots. Julie Bartling, auditor for Gregory County, said her office is “waiting patiently” and ready to begin voting when ballots arrive.
State law requires auditors to begin early voting within 48 hours of receiving ballots.
By the end of the first full week of early and absentee voting for South Dakota’s 2024 primary election, 1,857 ballots had been cast either in person or through the mail.
Aberdeen Insider Associate Editor Elisa Sand contributed to this report.
