Tag: south dakota
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Amendment C defeated in South Dakota
Amendment C was defeated by South Dakota voters on June 7, 2022. With 99.7% of precincts reporting, the ‘No’ vote was at 67.43% (122,387), and the ‘Yes’ vote was at 32.57% (59,111), with a total of 163,014 voting on the amendment. The amendment would have changed the voter requirement threshold for future ballot measures, and…
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Amendment C on the June 7 ballot for South Dakota voters
In South Dakota, one statewide ballot measure will appear on the June 7 primary ballot. Amendment C would change the vote requirement for future ballot measures, and may impact measures appearing on the ballot this November. Amendment C is the only statewide ballot measure that will appear on the June 7 ballot in South Dakota. Currently,…
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Marijuana legalization initiative qualifies for the South Dakota ballot
On Wednesday, South Dakota Secretary of State Steve Barnett (R) announced that a ballot initiative to legalize marijuana was certified for the ballot. The measure will be titled Initiated Measure 27, and will appear on the general election ballot in November. South Dakotans for Better Marijuana Laws led the campaign to place the measure on…
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State legislative incumbents in South Dakota are facing more contested primaries than at any point since 2010
Thirty-five of the 71 South Dakota state legislators running for re-election this year—all Republicans—face contested primaries. That equals 49% of incumbents, the highest rate since 2010. A contested primary is one where more candidates are running than there are seats up for election. In South Dakota’s Senate, every district has one seat, so a primary…
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Signatures for marijuana and Medicaid initiatives submitted in South Dakota
In South Dakota, two separate campaigns submitted their petition signatures on May 3 to get their initiatives on the ballot in November. The signatures were submitted to the secretary of state’s office on Tuesday afternoon. One initiative, sponsored by the Dakotans for Health campaign, aims to expand Medicaid in South Dakota to adults between 18…
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No Democrats file for South Dakota’s U.S. House seat for second election cycle
Two candidates filed to run for South Dakota’s one U.S. House seat in 2022. The filing deadline for this election was March 29. This is the fewest number of candidates to file for the seat since 2016 (when there were also two candidates). Three candidates ran for the seat in 2020, and six candidates ran…
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South Dakota House impeaches state attorney general for actions related to 2020 fatal crash
The South Dakota House of Representatives impeached Attorney General Jason Ravnsborg (R) on April 12 for his actions related to a car accident that killed a pedestrian in September 2020. The state House voted 36-31 to approve House Resolution 7002 (HR 7002) which states, “A RESOLUTION, Providing for the impeachment of Jason Ravnsborg, Attorney General…
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Governor Noem signs bill to prohibit teaching certain divisive concepts in public universities
South Dakota Governor Kristi Noem (R) on March 21, 2022, signed a bill to prohibit critical race theory in public universities. The bill blocks public universities from incorporating divisive concepts into orientation and training materials that would prompt people to feel discomfort about their race. Noem has described the bill as a rejection of critical…
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Voters will decide on legislative proposals adding restrictions to ballot initiative processes in Arizona, Arkansas, and South Dakota in 2022
Voters in at least three states will decide legislative proposals to change citizen-initiated ballot measure processes this year. Legislatures in Arizona, Arkansas, and South Dakota have passed constitutional amendments on ballot initiatives, and additional constitutional changes are being considered in Arizona and Missouri. In 2020, voters decided legislative referrals on ballot initiatives in Arkansas, Florida,…
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Initiated amendment to expand Medicaid to appear on South Dakota November 2022 ballot
On January 3, 2021, the South Dakota Secretary of State’s office announced that an initiative to expand Medicaid qualified for the November 2022 ballot with 38,244 signatures deemed to be valid. South Dakotans Decide Healthcare reported submitting 47,000 signatures for the initiated constitutional amendment on November 8, 2021. To qualify for the ballot, 33,921 valid…