This Tuesday, November 3, South Dakotans will head to the polls for the 2026 general election. Every election makes history, and this year’s election offers several opportunities for South Dakota political history to be made.
Governor’s Race
In the race for Governor, incumbent Republican Larry Rhoden and Lt. Governor Tony Venhuizen face Democratic challengers Dan Ahlers, a former state legislator from Dell Rapids, and his running mate, former State Representative Steve McCleerey of Sisseton.
Rhoden has already made history this year. After finishing second in a four-way Republican primary in June, he defeated Aberdeen businessman Toby Doeden in July in South Dakota’s first-ever statewide runoff election. Rhoden is also the first governor who succeeded to the office to subsequently win his party’s nomination for a full term.
A victory on Tuesday would set two more historical milestones. Rhoden would be the first South Dakota governor to succeed to the office from the lieutenant governorship and subsequently win election to a full term in his own right. Harvey Wollman, who succeeded Governor Richard Kneip in 1978, and Walter Dale Miller, who succeeded Governor George S. Mickelson in 1993, were both unsuccessful in their bids for election.
Rhoden, a rancher from Union Center, would also be the first West River resident elected governor since M. Q. Sharpe of Kennebec, who was elected in 1942 and reelected in 1944. The other West River governors were Tom Berry of Belvidere, who was elected in 1932 and 1934; Leslie Jensen of Hot Springs, who defeated Berry in 1936; and Walter Dale Miller, who succeeded to office in 1993 following the death of Governor George S. Mickelson, but lost his bid for the Republican nomination in 1994. Rhoden would be the first “West River rancher” elected governor since Tom Berry. (Sharpe was a lawyer and Jensen owned the Hot Springs telephone company.)
Ahlers, meanwhile, hopes to end one of the longest current streaks in American politics. Republicans have held the South Dakota Governor’s Office continuously since 1979, the longest current streak of gubernatorial control by either party in the nation. The last Democrat elected governor was Richard Kneip, who won his final term in 1974, and the last Democratic governor was Harvey Wollman, who succeeded Kneip when he resigned in 1978.
The 2026 election also marks the first time that gubernatorial nominees have selected their running mates under a new law enacted in 2025, rather than having those selections made at state party conventions.
US Senate and US House
In the race for U.S. Senate, incumbent Republican Mike Rounds is seeking a third term against independent challenger Brian Bengs.
Rounds is already one of just 30 South Dakotans who have served at least 25 years in state and federal elected office. He served ten years in the State Senate and eight years as governor before his election to the U.S. Senate in 2014. If Rounds is reelected and completes another six-year term, he will reach 36 years of service, tying the late U.S. Senator Tim Johnson for the longest such service in state history. Johnson served eight years in the State Legislature, ten years in the U.S. House, and eighteen years in the U.S. Senate. (Governor Rhoden and Democratic PUC nominee Frank Kloucek, who served 22 years in the State Legislature, would both also join the “Over 25 Club” if elected this year.)
South Dakota will also elect a new member of Congress for the first time since 2018. Republican Attorney General Marty Jackley faces Democrat Nikki Gronli for the seat being vacated by Congressman Dusty Johnson, who unsuccessfully sought the Republican nomination for governor.
Will the GOP winning streak continue?
The 2026 election marks sixteen years since, in 2010, the South Dakota Republican Party began its current winning streak. That year, U.S. Senator John Thune won reelection unopposed – a first for a U.S. Senator from South Dakota. Kristi Noem defeated incumbent Congresswoman Stephanie Herseth Sandlin for a seat in the U.S. House of Representatives. Dennis Daugaard won his first term as Governor, as Republicans made big gains in the State Legislature.
The Republican winning streak from 2010-24 currently stands at 50 statewide election wins, making it the third longest in state history. That streak could extend to 59 wins this year, if Republicans prevail in the statewide elections for U.S. Senate, U.S. House, Governor and Lt. Governor, Secretary of State, Attorney General, State Treasurer, State Auditor, Commissioner of School and Public Lands, and Public Utilities Commissioner.
One Republican victory is assured: Lance Russell of Hot Springs is unopposed in his bid for attorney general. It is only the second time in state history that a non-incumbent has run for an open seat statewide office without opposition. The first was four years ago, when Marty Jackley returned to the AG’s office unopposed after a four-year hiatus.
State Legislature
Finally, there is the question of the State Legislature. Republicans currently hold 96 of the 105 legislative seats, with a 32-3 majority in the Senate and a 64-6 majority in the House. That is the strongest level of Republican control since 1953.
Remarkably, Democrats have not made a net gain in legislative seats since the 2008 election. In eight consecutive elections, Republicans have either maintained their legislative strength or added seats. Republican control of both legislature chambers is already assured, but it remains to be seen if Democrats can end this ignominious streak and gain seats this year.
Following Election Day, legislative caucuses will meet within a week or so to select the legislative leadership for the 2027 and 2028 legislative sessions.
