Know who you're voting for.

Governor of South Dakota

Larry Rhoden's campaign says he is a fourth-generation South Dakotan and a rancher who served 16 years in the legislature and six years as lieutenant governor. It says he became governor and is running to stay in the office.

• He says his mission is to keep South Dakota strong, safe, and free, with less government and less red tape.
• He says his legislative record focused on low taxes, strong property rights, and personal freedom.
• He says he would stand up for law enforcement and for property rights, and keep the state open for business.

governorlarryrhoden.com · Donate

Business owner and former state legislator running for governor

Dan Ahlers's campaign says he is a business owner, a former Dell Rapids Chamber of Commerce administrator, and a former state legislator who served on the Appropriations Committee. He says he would use that experience as governor.

No 2026 issue list was found for this candidate.

danahlers.com

U.S. senator and former governor

Mike Rounds's campaign says he is a former business owner, state senator, and two-term governor who now serves in the U.S. Senate. He says he is running for reelection.

• He says he stands with an America First agenda and with President Trump, and that he will back policies that put South Dakota and the country first.
• He says that as a member of the Armed Services Committee he works to keep the military the best in the world.
• He says he supports local control of education, wants to eliminate the U.S. Department of Education, and supports the Second Amendment.

roundsforsenate.com · Donate

Independent candidate for U.S. Senate

Brian Bengs is running as an independent for the U.S. Senate. His site says he was a National Park Ranger and that he has signed a pledge against money from artificial-intelligence data centers.

• He says he wants a constitutional amendment to ban unlimited corporate political spending that he traces to the Citizens United decision.
• He says local communities should be able to refuse a new data center, and that he will not take data-center money.
• He says he supports term limits for Congress and that he would not vote to continue what he calls an unnecessary war with Iran.

bengsforsouthdakota.com · Donate

State's attorney for Fall River and Oglala Lakota counties

Lance Russell's campaign says he is the longtime state's attorney for Fall River County and Oglala Lakota County and that he won the Republican nomination at the state party convention. The site describes him as a proponent of law and order.

• He says tough-on-crime policies work.
• He says his daily work is meant to protect the people of South Dakota.

lancerussellsd.com

State representative and small-business owner

Heather Baxter's campaign says she has been the state representative for District 34 since November 2024 and owns a small business in Rapid City and Custer. She says she is a lifelong South Dakotan running for secretary of state.

• She says she would push secure and transparent elections and restore trust in how votes are run.
• She says she would give small businesses easier access to office resources and cut red tape through what she calls SD DOGE.
• She says she would improve customer service in the secretary of state's office.

baxterforsos.com · Donate

Former state trooper running for secretary of state

Terrence Davis's campaign says he is a former state trooper who worked out of Sioux Falls and is the Democratic candidate for secretary of state. The site says the current Republican secretary of state, Monae Johnson, endorsed him.

• He says he trusts South Dakota's election system and will protect it.
• His stated standard is that every vote is counted and every voice is heard.

davisforsouthdakota.com · Donate

Libertarian candidate for secretary of state

Tamara Lesnar's campaign says the Libertarian Party nominated her for secretary of state and that earlier campaigns of hers focused on civil liberties and civil rights. She says the office should keep elections, administration, and business services running smoothly.

• She says she would make voting places easier to reach, curb what she calls double taxation, and build a statewide database of ballot-initiative signatures.
• She says she would file lawsuits against laws she believes violate the Bill of Rights.
• She criticizes sharing voter lists with federal agencies and giving the Postal Service a role in deciding who receives an absentee ballot.

lesnarforsd.com

Former attorney general running for Congress in South Dakota.

His campaign says he kept South Dakota safe as attorney general and as U.S. attorney, and that he is running to take that record to Congress. It says his father, a lawyer and former Meade County state's attorney, administered the oath when Marty became attorney general.

• The campaign says the job in Congress is to keep South Dakota safe, and it points to three years as U.S. attorney and three elections as attorney general.
• The site highlights an A+ NRA rating and endorsements that include the NRA-PVF and South Dakota Right to Life.

martyjackley.com

Candidate for Congress

The campaign says this race is about listening to people, working together, and electing leaders who will stand up for South Dakota. She says government does not need to be bigger, but it needs to be better.

No 2026 issue list was found for this candidate.

Nikki G for SD