Election Nov. 8

It’s time to decide who should represent you in Congress, statewide offices, the legislature, in the courts and in local governments.
Nov. 7 is the last day to request an absentee ballot and Nov. 8 is Election Day.
Polls are open 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. at your designated polling location:
Precinct No. 1 - Hermosa United Church of Christ.
Precinct No. 2 - Community and Historical Center, Fairburn.
Precinct No. 3 - Community Center, Buffalo Gap.
Precinct No. 4 - Pringle Fire Hall.
Precincts No. 5-8 - Custer Co. Annex Building.
Precinct No. 9 - Bear Rock, Custer Co. Hwy. Dept. Building.
Precinct No. 10 - Elk Mountain School.
To confirm your official voting district, consult the “Voter Information Portal” tab on the South Dakota Secretary of State website, sdsos.gov.
Here are the candidates on this year’s ballot:
Running for U.S. Senate is incumbent John Thune (R), the democratic nominee is Brian Bengs and Tamara Lesner is the Libertarian Party’s nominee.
U.S. senators are elected to six-year terms in the upper house of Congress.
In the congressional race, the incumbent is republican Dusty Johnson. Collin Duprel (L) is also listed on the ballot for United States Representative.
Members of the U.S. House of Representatives are elected to two-year terms in the lower house of Congress.
Also on this year’s ballot is the race for governor, the highest state office in South Dakota. The governor approves the biannual state budget and can sign bills into law after they have been passed by the legislature. The lieutenant governor serves as the president of the Senate when the Legislature is in session, and can cast a tie-breaking vote.
Incumbent Kristi Noem (R) is running with Lt. Gov. Larry Rhoden. The Democratic Party’s team is running Jamie Smith for governor and Jennifer Keintz for lieutenant governor.
The Libertarian Party’s candidates are Tracey Quint for governor and Ashley Strand for lieutenant governor.
Competing for Secretary of State is democrat Thomas Cool and republican Monae Johnson.
Secretary of State is the third highest-ranking office in the state; they oversee elections and act as South Dakota’s official record-keeper.
Attorney general is also on the ballot this election, and Marty Jackley is the only candidate up for vote.
Also on this year’s ballot is the chance to vote for state auditor. The incumbent is Richard Satisgast (R). Stephanie Marty (D) and Rene Meyer (L) are also auditor candidates.
Custer County voters may also vote for state treasurer on this ballot. The state treasurer is the chief financial officer of the state government and responsible for maintaining state funds by investing and maintaining the budget.
South Dakota’s incumbent is republican Josh Haeder (R) and John Cunningham is the Democratic Party’s treasurer candidate.
There are three commissioner positions on this year’s ballot. Commissioners are elected as policy makers for regional services such as child welfare and utilities.
Up for the position of  Commissioner of School and Public Lands is Timothy Azure (D) and Brock Greenfield (R).
Running for Public Utilities Commissioner is incumbent Chris Nelson (R) and Jeffrey Barth (D).
On this year’s ballot, Custer County may vote for up to three County Commissioners. Craig Hindle, Mike Linde and Jim Lintz are the Republican Party candidates; Kevin Rosse is the Independent.
The State Senate office for District 30 has only Julie Frye-Mueller (R) submitted as a candidate.
Also running for South Dakota’s State Legislature, this year’s ballot accepts  two votes for State Representative. Dennis Krull and Trish Ladner are the Republican Party’s candidates; Bret Swanson is the Democratic Party’s option.
This year’s ballot also asks two questions about Supreme Court Justice retention. Justices Patricia DeVaney and Mark Saller’s terms expire Jan. 1 and voters are asked if they’d like DeVaney and Saller to continue representing their supreme court districts.
The ballot next lists eight judges who are running unopposed in the Seventh Circuit. Voters may vote for each one or leave the oval blank.
There are two initiatives on this ballot up for vote.
Amendment D is the constitutional initiative for Medicaid expansion:
A “yes” vote supports Medicaid for adults aged 18 to 65 with incomes 138 percent below the poverty level.  
A “no” vote opposes expanding Medicaid to these adults.
The last item up for statewide vote on this year’s ballot is Initiated Measure 27:
A “yes” vote legalizes recreational marijuana for adults aged over 21.
A “no” vote doesn’t support the amendment.