- Thousands more signatures than needed were submitted to support South Dakota’s “top-two” primary system.
- Under the proposed system, which is already in place in states such as California and Washington, candidates from all parties would participate in a single nonpartisan ballot, with the top two candidates advancing to the general election, regardless of affiliation. .
- Registered Republican Deanna “De” Knudson, who is sponsoring the bill, said the current nomination system “removes about half of the voters from the actual race, which is a question of fairness.” We believe wholeheartedly.”
Supporters of South Dakota’s “top two” primary system, which would replace the current partisan process with one that allows all voters to participate, have filed thousands of petitions, more than they need to get the ballot initiative on the ballot this fall. Submitted signature.
On Monday, sponsors of the South Dakota open primary announced they had submitted a petition with 47,000 signatures to Secretary of State Monáe Johnson’s office. The task force needs 35,017 valid signatures to place it on the November ballot. Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s government has until August 13 to approve the bill, which is a proposed constitutional amendment.
Under South Dakota’s current primary system, candidates for governor, Congress, Congress, and county races compete in partisan primaries. Under this measure, all candidates would compete against each other in a single primary, with the top two vote-getters from each race or seat advancing to the general election. A similar measure failed in 2016.
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Other states, including California and Washington, are also holding “top two” primaries similar to the bill proposed in South Dakota.
The bill’s sponsor, registered Republican Deanna “De” Knudson, said she doesn’t think the state’s system is fair, saying it “keeps about half of the voters out of the actual race. , we truly believe this is fair.” problem. “
The South Dakota State Capitol photographed in Pierre, South Dakota. (Education Images/Universal Images Group, Getty Images)
Republicans control the South Dakota Legislature and hold all statewide elected offices and legislative seats. Democrats have not won a statewide election since 2008, when former Sen. Tim Johnson and Rep. Stephanie Herseth Sandlin won reelection to their final terms.
South Dakota has about 602,000 registered voters, including 304,000 Republicans and 144,000 Democrats, who register as “independent” or “unaffiliated,” according to online voter registration tracking. The total number of voters is close to 150,000.
State Republican Party Chairman and state Sen. John Wick said he firmly opposes the measure. “There is no benefit to the Republican Party,” he said. He said the state Republican Party Central Committee voted unanimously against the measure.
“I want Republicans to be able to choose a Republican candidate and Democrats to be able to choose a Democratic candidate,” Wike said. “If you want to be an independent person, you need to be independent of the decisions that affect your life.”
Knudson said the measure would create a more competitive process and “ensure that the winning candidate is the one most South Dakotans agree with.” She questioned the balance of power in Congress, where Democrats hold 11 of the 105 seats, and whether it truly reflects the will of voters.
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Dan Ahlers, executive director of the state Democratic Party, said the party has not taken a stance on the measure. In addition to registered Democrats, the Democratic Party allows “independent” voters to vote in the primary.
