Title 12 — ELECTIONS

12-4-53 Receipt of payment for registration of voters based on number of voters registered prohibited--Violation as misdemeanor. 12-4-54 Annual report--Secretary of state--Individuals removed from county voter registration list--Publication. 12-4-55 Voter registration numbers to …

An individual is entitled to register as a voter of this state if the individual: (1) Is a citizen of the United States and has provided sufficient evidence, as set forth in § 12-4-1.4 , to demonstrate the individual's citizenship; (2) Is a resident, as defined in § 12-1-4 , of t…

12-4-1.2 Voter registration form--Certification. 12-4-1.3 Federal voter--Designation--Ballot. 12-4-1.4 Demonstration of citizenship--List of documentation--Verification of naturalization. 12-4-2 County auditor in charge of voter registration records. 12-4-2.1 12-4-2.1 , 12-4-2.2.…

The voter registration form must include a certification of voter eligibility by which the applicant attests, under the penalty of perjury, that the applicant: (1) Is a citizen of the United States; (2) Will be eighteen years or older on or before the next election; (3) Is a resi…

A county auditor must designate an individual as a federal voter if: (1) At the time the individual applies to register as a voter or to vote by absentee ballot, the individual provides only the address of a commercial mail receiving agency, mail forwarding service, or other post…

Any individual applying to register as a voter shall provide documentation, along with the application, to demonstrate that the individual is a United States citizen. The individual shall present: (1) The individual's South Dakota driver license or nondriver identification card, …

The county auditor shall provide from the master registration file, in paper or electronic format, a separate list of the names and addresses of all registered voters in each voting precinct as established pursuant to chapter 12-14 , § 9-13-16 , or 13-7-11 in the county, which sh…

Whenever so requested, the county auditor shall furnish to the clerk of the United States District Court for the district of South Dakota, at no cost to the county, the current precinct registration lists or certified copies thereof referred to in § 12-4-10 for all election preci…

If the boundaries of any election precinct are changed, the county auditor shall immediately change the registration file to correctly show the names and the other relevant voting information required upon registration of the voters who are residents of the election precinct. Sou…

Any new registrant previously registered elsewhere shall be required to sign an authorization which shall be forwarded by the registration official to the auditor of the county of former registration, or other appropriate registration official, who shall remove the registrant's n…

12-4-14

12-4-15 Voter information and party affiliation--Designation or change. 12-4-16

A person may designate or change that person's party affiliation, name, address, phone number, or email address by completing a new registration card. If a person completes a registration card to change that person's name, address, phone number, or email address, and leaves the f…

12-4-17

12-4-18 Persons declared mentally incompetent, deceased, or serving sentence for felony conviction--Removed from registration records--Promulgation of rules--Certification. 12-4-19 Address verification request--Confirmation mailing--Exception. 12-4-19.1 Confirmation mailing notic…

The clerk of courts shall, within fifteen days after the close of each month, prepare an abstract from the records of the names of persons declared mentally incompetent in the preceding month. The clerk of courts shall send the name of a person declared mentally incompetent to th…

Any voter in the active registration file who has failed to vote, has not updated the voter's registration information, and has not replied to a confirmation mailing at least once during the last preceding four consecutive years shall be sent a nonforwardable return-if-undelivera…

If the acknowledgement notice sent pursuant to § 12-4-5.3 is returned to the county auditor as undeliverable, the auditor must send a confirmation mailing letter or postcard that: (1) States the voter's registration may be canceled if the letter or postcard is not returned; (2) L…

The county auditor must move the voter to an inactive registration file if: (1) The voter does not return the confirmation mailing by the deadline stated on the mailing; or (2) The confirmation mailing is returned to the auditor as undeliverable. Source: SL 1975, ch 120 , § 3; SL…

12-4-19.4 Cancellation of voter registration. 12-4-19.5

If a voter placed in the inactive registration file does not vote by the second general election following the confirmation mailing, the registration shall be canceled. This determination shall be made between January first and November fifteenth of every odd - numbered year. Sou…

12-4-19.6 National change of address notice. 12-4-19.7 Voter registration list maintenance confirmation mailing notice--Contents. 12-4-20 12-4-20 to 12-4-22. Repealed by SL 1974, ch 118 , § 200. 12-4-23

The national change of address notice shall be sent by forwarding service requested to each voter in the active registration file who has failed to vote, has not updated the voter's registration information, has not replied to a confirmation mailing at least once during the last …

If the address verification request sent pursuant to § 12-4-19 is returned to the county auditor as undeliverable, the auditor must send a voter registration list maintenance confirmation mailing letter or postcard that: (1) States the voter's registration may be canceled if the …

The county auditor has complete charge of maintaining and safeguarding the voter registration records in the county. The county auditor shall retain all voter registration records in the auditor's office in paper or electronic form. Except as provided in §§ 12-4-9 , 12-4-9.2 , an…

12-4-3 Mail registration cards and instructions provided by auditor--Contact information provided by private entities. 12-4-3.1

12-4-23.1

12-4-24 Precinct lists for local election--Delivery to voting precincts. 12-4-24.1 Repealed by SL 2012, ch 81 , § 5. 12-4-25 12-4-25 to 12-4-28. Repealed by SL 1974, ch 118 , § 200. 12-4-29

The county auditor shall complete and make available to the official charged with the conduct of a local election at least one day preceding the election a precinct registration list and the person in charge of the election shall deliver the list to each of the superintendents of…

12-4-25 to 12-4-28. Repealed by SL 1974, ch 118 , § 200. 12-4-29. Repealed by SL 1994, ch 107 , § 25. 12-4-30. Repealed by SL 1974, ch 118 , § 200. 12-4-31. Repealed by SL 1994, ch 107 , § 26.

12-4-30

The county auditor shall provide mail registration cards along with instructions on how to properly register voters to private entities and individuals. Each private entity or individual shall provide information to the voter being registered on how the voter may contact such pri…

12-4-3.2 Private entity or individual registering voters--Form filing deadline--Violation as misdemeanor. 12-4-4

Any private entity or individual registering a person to vote shall file the completed registration form with the county auditor within ten days or by the next voter registration deadline, whichever occurs first. A violation of this section is a Class 2 misdemeanor. Source: SL 20…

12-4-31

12-4-32 National Voter Registration Act of 1993. 12-4-33 Chief state election official. 12-4-34 References to registered voters--Inactive voters may sign petition. 12-4-35 Rules for the National Voter Registration Act. 12-4-36 Rebuttable presumption that certain electors not qual…

Sections 4 to 8, inclusive, of the National Voter Registration Act of 1993 apply to all elections in South Dakota which require voter registration. Source: SL 1994, ch 107 , § 32.

The secretary of state is the chief state election official pursuant to section 10 of the National Voter Registration Act of 1993. Source: SL 1994, ch 107 , § 33.

If a statute refers to registered voters, it does not include those in the inactive registration file unless specifically included. Any voter in the inactive registration file may sign a petition. Source: SL 1994, ch 107 , § 34; SL 2002, ch 40 , § 14; SL 2010, ch 74 , § 9; SL 202…

The State Board of Elections may promulgate rules pursuant to chapter 1-26 necessary for implementation of the National Voter Registration Act. Source: SL 1994, ch 107 , § 35.

There is a rebuttable presumption that the signer of a petition filed pursuant to chapter 2-1 , 6-16 , 7-18A , 9-13 , 9-20 , 12-6 , 12-7 , or 13-7 is not a qualified elector if the signer's name fails to appear on the active or inactive voter registration list of the county state…

The secretary of state shall establish and maintain a computerized system for maintaining and utilizing the voter registration file. Each county auditor shall transmit daily any changes to the master registration file or the absentee voter log to the secretary of state using the …

The secretary of state shall establish and maintain a rolling five-year historical archive of the complete statewide voter registration file, including the weekly updates published by the secretary pursuant to this section. The information contained in the historical archive of t…

The statewide voter registration file maintained by the secretary of state shall be considered a duplicate file of the official voter registration records held in each county office. If there is any discrepancy between the statewide voter registration file maintained by the secre…

The secretary of state shall promulgate rules, pursuant to chapter 1-26 , providing for: (1) The establishment and maintenance of the statewide voter registration file; (2) The transmission of the voter registration information from the county auditor to the secretary of state; (…

12-4-4.1

12-4-4.2 Uniformed Overseas Citizens Absentee Voting Act implemented. 12-4-4.3 Overseas citizen defined. 12-4-4.4 Registration and voting by overseas citizens--Conditions. 12-4-4.5 Absentee registration and voting in last county and precinct of residence. 12-4-4.6 Absentee ballot…

The secretary of state shall provide any absentee uniformed services and overseas voter information on voter registration procedures and how to vote absentee. Source: SL 2003, ch 83 , § 13. 12-4-4.11. Repealed by SL 2016, ch 77 , § 1.

12-4-4.12 Registration of voter under Uniformed and Overseas Citizens Absentee Voting Act. 12-4-5 Entry of applicants in registration file--Deadline--List for runoff election. 12-4-5.1

If a voter is identified as being covered by the Uniformed and Overseas Citizens Absentee Voting Act, 52 U.S.C. § 20301 et seq., as of January 1, 2023, the voter may register to vote through the system provided by the Office of the Secretary of State. Source: SL 2014, ch 72 , § 2…