Hand-Count Initiatives Fall In SD Primary Elections

Sioux Falls, SD — Another primary season has concluded in South Dakota. On the June 5 primary ballot, candidates for office competed for nomination spots and ballot questions at the county and municipal levels received their results. Of special interest to the VDA were three county-level initiatives asking whether ballots must be hand counted rather than machine counted. If passed, these initiatives would have banned the use of vote tabulating machines that are nearly universal across the United States.

Where did the initiatives come from?

The genesis of these county-level ballot initiatives can be traced back to 2020 and the widespread – and discredited – allegations of electoral fraud following the election. Complete hand-counting of election results as official state policy made a comeback following 2020, despite all evidence that machine counting is cheaper and more accurate than hand-counts. 

In South Dakota, we use a combination of two methods of marking ballots: hand-marked paper ballots, and ballot-marking devices, which allow voters with disabilities to mark their paper ballots. Neither type of machine poses any risk to election security; in fact, South Dakota’s election security ranks above the national average according to MIT’s Election Performance Index and the Heritage Foundation. 

Hand-Count Proponents Take Losses

Nonetheless, in early 2024, a group called SD Canvassing organized several county-level initiatives to force a return to hand counting. They qualified for the June 4 primary ballot in Gregory, Haakon, and Tripp counties and continue to collect signatures for other county initiatives as well. Thankfully, voters in all three counties rejected the hand-count measures: 54% of Gregory county voters; 61% of Haakon county voters; and 57% of Tripp county voters voted against the initiatives.

Despite losses across the board, SD Canvassing has promised to continue their fight to make our elections less accurate and more expensive. Let’s hope South Dakotans continue to reject their misguided proposals, which represent a backwards step in election management.

Media coverage:

South Dakota Searchlight:

3/4/24 - Petitions circulate in at least 18 counties to eliminate vote tabulators and require hand counting

3/14/24  - Push for election hand counts spreads despite rejection in Lawrence County

4/28/24 - Three counties will vote on banning ballot tabulator machines, requiring hand-counting

6/5/24 - Voters reject machine-counting ban in all three counties where it was on the ballot

The Dakota Scout:

3/18/24 - Election hand-count proponents vow legal action in Lawrence County fight

South Dakota News Watch

3/11/24 - Hand counting vs. voting machines: Debate rages in South Dakota

6/27/24 - Hand counting errors muddle post-election audit in McPherson County

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