Democrat voter registration falls behind “other” category in South Dakota

August 22, 2023

PIERRE, S.D.–Historic shifts in South Dakota voter registration have culminated in a milestone: The number of voters registered as independents or without a political affiliation has surpassed the number of Democrats.

South Dakota Searchlight reports that Independent and non-politically affiliated voters (those who leave the political affiliation blank when they first register) have been growing steadily in number since the 1990s.

Meanwhile,  Democratic registered voters have been in a steep decline since 2008.

Recently, for the first time, Democratic numbers dipped below the “other” category — the combined number of voters registered either as independent or with no affiliation.
According to the South Dakota Secretary of State’s Office, there are a combined 151,177 independent and non-politically affiliated registered voters in the state. There are 150,887 Democrats.

Republicans continue to be the largest political party in the state and recently surpassed the 300,000 registered-voter threshold. The number of registered Republicans in the state stands at 304,047, and Republicans hold every office that’s elected on a statewide basis. They also hold 94 of the state’s 105 legislative seats.