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South Dakota Auditor election, 2026

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2022
South Dakota State Auditor
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Election details
Filing deadline:
General: November 3, 2026
How to vote
Poll times:

7 a.m. to 7 p.m.
Voting in South Dakota

Ballotpedia analysis
Federal and state primary competitiveness
State executive elections in 2026
Impact of term limits in 2026
State government trifectas
State government triplexes
Ballotpedia's Election Analysis Hub, 2026
South Dakota
executive elections
Governor

Lieutenant Governor
Attorney General
Secretary of State
Auditor
Commissioner of School and Public Lands
Treasurer
Public Utilities Commission

South Dakota is holding an election for state auditor on November 3, 2026.

There are no official candidates yet for this election.


In South Dakota, political parties select their state executive candidates at conventions rather than through primaries, with the governor being the only exception. As of December 2025, the dates of the conventions had not yet been announced.

Candidates and election results

Note: The following list includes official candidates only. Ballotpedia defines official candidates as people who:

  • Register with a federal or state campaign finance agency before the candidate filing deadline
  • Appear on candidate lists released by government election agencies

There are no official candidates yet for this election.

General election

The general election will occur on November 3, 2026.

Candidate profiles

There are currently no candidate profiles created for this race. Candidate profiles will appear here as they are created. Encourage the candidates in this race to complete Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey so that their profile will appear here.

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No candidate in this race has completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey. Ballotpedia is seeking 100 percent participation so voters can learn more about all the candidates on their ballots.

Voting information

See also: Voting in South Dakota

Ballotpedia will publish the dates and deadlines related to this election as they are made available.


Past elections

The section below details election results for this office in elections dating back to 2014.

2022

See also: South Dakota Auditor election, 2022

General election

General election for South Dakota State Auditor

Incumbent Richard Sattgast defeated Stephanie Marty and Rene Meyer in the general election for South Dakota State Auditor on November 8, 2022.

Candidate
%
Votes
Image of Richard Sattgast
Richard Sattgast (R)
 
62.7
 
206,633
Stephanie Marty (D)
 
31.9
 
105,163
Rene Meyer (L)
 
5.5
 
18,001

Total votes: 329,797
Candidate Connection = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Democratic convention

Democratic convention for South Dakota State Auditor

Stephanie Marty advanced from the Democratic convention for South Dakota State Auditor on July 9, 2022.


Candidate Connection = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.

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Republican convention

Republican convention for South Dakota State Auditor

Incumbent Richard Sattgast advanced from the Republican convention for South Dakota State Auditor on June 25, 2022.

Candidate
Image of Richard Sattgast
Richard Sattgast (R)

Candidate Connection = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.

Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Libertarian convention

Libertarian convention for South Dakota State Auditor

Rene Meyer advanced from the Libertarian convention for South Dakota State Auditor on April 23, 2022.

Candidate
Rene Meyer (L)

Candidate Connection = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.

Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

2018

See also: South Dakota Auditor election, 2018

General election

General election for South Dakota State Auditor

Richard Sattgast defeated Tom Cool in the general election for South Dakota State Auditor on November 6, 2018.

Candidate
%
Votes
Image of Richard Sattgast
Richard Sattgast (R)
 
64.0
 
202,055
Image of Tom Cool
Tom Cool (D)
 
36.0
 
113,628

Total votes: 315,683
(100.00% precincts reporting)
Candidate Connection = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.

Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

2014

See also: South Dakota down ballot state executive elections, 2014

Republican incumbent Steve Barnett won re-election on November 4, 2014.[1]

South Dakota Auditor, 2014
Party Candidate Vote % Votes
     Republican Green check mark transparent.pngSteve Barnett Incumbent 79.9% 191,755
     Libertarian Kurt Evans 20.1% 48,103
Total Votes 239,858
Election results via South Dakota Secretary of State

Election analysis

Click the tabs below to view information about demographics, past elections, and partisan control of the state.

  • Presidential elections - Information about presidential elections in the state.
  • Statewide elections - Information about recent U.S. Senate and gubernatorial elections in the state.
  • State partisanship - The partisan makeup of the state's congressional delegation and state government.
  • Demographics - Information about the state's demographics and how they compare to the country as a whole.


See also: Presidential voting trends in South Dakota and The Cook Political Report's Partisan Voter Index

Cook PVI by congressional district

Cook Political Report's Partisan Voter Index for South Dakota, 2026
District Incumbent PVI
South Dakota's At-Large Dusty Johnson R+15

2024 presidential results by 2026 congressional district lines

2024 presidential results in congressional districts, South Dakota
District Kamala Harris Democratic Party Donald Trump Republican Party
South Dakota's At-Large 34.0% 63.0%
Source: The Downballot

2016-2024

How a state's counties vote in a presidential election and the size of those counties can provide additional insights into election outcomes at other levels of government including statewide and congressional races. Below, four categories are used to describe each county's voting pattern over the 2016, 2020, and 2024 presidential elections: Solid, Trending, Battleground, and New. Click [show] on the table below for examples:


Following the 2024 presidential election, 94.8% of South Dakotans lived in one of the state's 60 Solid Republican counties, which voted for the Republican presidential candidate in every election from 2016 to 2024, and 4.9% lived in one of 5 Solid Democratic counties. Overall, South Dakota was Solid Republican, having voted for Donald Trump (R) in 2016, Donald Trump (R) in 2020, and Donald Trump (R) in 2024. Use the table below to view the total number of each type of county in South Dakota following the 2024 election as well as the overall percentage of the state population located in each county type.

Historical voting trends

South Dakota presidential election results (1900-2024)

  • 3 Democratic wins
  • 28 Republican wins
  • 1 other win
Year 1900 1904 1908 1912 1916 1920 1924 1928 1932 1936 1940 1944 1948 1952 1956 1960 1964 1968 1972 1976 1980 1984 1988 1992 1996 2000 2004 2008 2012 2016 2020 2024
Winning Party R R R P[2] R R R R D D R R R R R R D R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R

This section details the results of the five most recent U.S. Senate and gubernatorial elections held in the state.

U.S. Senate elections

See also: List of United States Senators from South Dakota

The table below details the vote in the five most recent U.S. Senate races in South Dakota.

U.S. Senate election results in South Dakota
Race Winner Runner up
2022 69.6%Republican Party 26.1%Democratic Party
2020 65.7%Republican Party 34.3%Democratic Party
2016 71.8%Republican Party 28.2%Republican Party
2014 50.4%Republican Party 29.5%Democratic Party
2010 100%Republican Party Uncontested
Average 71.5 29.5

Gubernatorial elections

See also: Governor of South Dakota

The table below details the vote in the five most recent gubernatorial elections in South Dakota.

Gubernatorial election results in South Dakota
Race Winner Runner up
2022 62.0%Republican Party 35.2%Democratic Party
2018 51.0%Republican Party 47.6%Democratic Party
2014 70.5%Republican Party 25.4%Democratic Party
2010 61.5%Republican Party 38.5%Democratic Party
2006 61.7%Republican Party 36.1%Democratic Party
Average 61.3 36.6
See also: Party control of South Dakota state government

Congressional delegation

The table below displays the partisan composition of South Dakota's congressional delegation as of October 2025.

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 executive

The table below displays the officeholders in South Dakota's top four state executive offices as of October 2025.

State executive officials in South Dakota, October 2025
Office Officeholder
Governor Republican Party Larry Rhoden
Lieutenant Governor Republican Party Tony Venhuizen
Secretary of State Republican Party Monae Johnson
Attorney General Republican Party Marty J. Jackley

State legislature

South Dakota State Senate

Party As of October 2025
     Democratic Party 3
     Republican Party 32
     Other 0
     Vacancies 0
Total 35

South Dakota House of Representatives

Party As of October 2025
     Democratic Party 6
     Republican Party 64
     Other 0
     Vacancies 0
Total 70

Trifecta control

South Dakota Party Control: 1992-2025
No Democratic trifectas  •  Thirty-two years of Republican trifectas
Scroll left and right on the table below to view more years.

Year 92 93 94 95 96 97 98 99 00 01 02 03 04 05 06 07 08 09 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25
Governor R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R
Senate R D D R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R
House R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R

The table below details demographic data in South Dakota and compares it to the broader United States as of 2023.

Demographic Data for South Dakota
South Dakota United States
Population 886,667 331,449,281
Land area (sq mi) 75,807 3,531,905
Race and ethnicity**
White 81.5% 63.4%
Black/African American 2.2% 12.4%
Asian 1.4% 5.8%
Native American 7.7% 0.9%
Pacific Islander 0.1% 0.4%
Other (single race) 1.4% 6.6%
Multiple 5.6% 10.7%
Hispanic/Latino 4.6% 19%
Education
High school graduation rate 93% 89.4%
College graduation rate 31.1% 35%
Income
Median household income $72,421 $78,538
Persons below poverty level 12% 12.4%
Source: population provided by U.S. Census Bureau, "Decennial Census" (2020). Other figures provided by U.S. Census Bureau, "American Community Survey" (5-year estimates 2018-2023).
**Note: Percentages for race and ethnicity may add up to more than 100 percent because respondents may report more than one race and the Hispanic/Latino ethnicity may be selected in conjunction with any race. Read more about race and ethnicity in the census here.


See also

South Dakota State Executive Elections News and Analysis
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South Dakota State Executive Offices
South Dakota State Legislature
South Dakota Courts
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South Dakota elections: 20262025202420232022202120202019201820172016
Party control of state government
State government trifectas
State of the state addresses
Partisan composition of governors

External links

Footnotes