Live Results: South Dakota midterm primaries

Leave your feedback Share Copy URL https://www.pbs.org/newshour/politics/live-results-south-dakota-midterm-primaries Email Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Pinterest Tumblr Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Live Results: South Dakota midterm primaries Politics Jun 2, 2026 9:00 AM EDT WASHINGTON (AP) — South Dakota's governor, the speaker of the state House, the state's lone representative in Congress and a businessman will face off in a competitive Republican primary for governor on Tuesday. Primary voters will also choose nominees for other state and federal offices, while Sioux Falls residents will elect a new mayor. READ MORE: Tax cuts collide with inflation as voters weigh Trump's economy in the midterms Gov. Larry Rhoden seeks a full term as the state's chief executive. He was previously lieutenant governor under then-Gov. Kristi Noem but assumed the top job when Noem stepped down in early 2025 to join President Donald Trump's Cabinet. Serving less than half a term as governor was not enough for Rhoden to clear the Republican field. He faces strong challenges from U.S. Rep. Dusty Johnson, state House Speaker Jon Hansen and businessman Toby Doeden. Educate your inbox Subscribe to Here’s the Deal, our politics newsletter for analysis you won’t find anywhere else. The winner will face former state Sen. Dan Ahlers in the general election. Ahlers is unopposed for the Democratic nomination. At the top of the ballot is the race for the U.S. Senate, in which Republican Mike Rounds seeks a third term. His opponent in the primary is Justin McNeal, a U.S. Navy veteran who ran as an independent in 2024 against Johnson for his U.S. House seat but was kept off the ballot over invalid signatures on his nominating petition. READ MORE: Why a surge of election-related websites could spell rising cyber threats for the midterms Nonprofit executive and former state trooper Julian Beaudion is unopposed for the Democratic nomination. Attorney and military veteran Brian Bengs is running in the general election as an independent. Bengs previously ran for the U.S. Senate in 2022 and received 26% of the vote against Republican Senate Majority Leader John Thune. State Attorney General Marty Jackley is running to replace Johnson in the U.S. House. He faces Republican James Bialota in the primary. Trump has endorsed Rounds for U.S. Senate and Jackley for U.S. House. He did not endorse a candidate for governor. In South Dakota primaries for governor, U.S. Senate and U.S. House, candidates must receive at least 35% of the vote to win the nomination. If no candidate reaches that threshold, the top two vote-getters advance to a June 23 runoff. In Sioux Falls, the state's most populous city, five candidates are competing to replace term-limited Mayor Paul TenHaken. If no candidate receives a vote majority, the top two finishers will advance to the runoff. The key counties to watch on primary night are on opposite ends of the state. Minnehaha County on the eastern border is home to