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 County results Janklow: 50–60% 60–70% 70–80% McKellips: 50–60% 60–70% 80–90% | ||||||||||||||||||||
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| Elections in South Dakota |
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The 1978 South Dakota gubernatorial election was held on November 7, 1978, to elect a Governor of South Dakota. Republican nominee Bill Janklow was elected, defeating Democratic nominee Roger D. McKellips.
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Roger McKellips | 34,160 | 49.09 | |
| Democratic | Harvey L. Wollman (Incumbent) | 32,690 | 46.97 | |
| Democratic | John Bohr | 2,743 | 3.94 | |
| Total votes | 69,593 | 100.00 | ||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Bill Janklow | 46,423 | 50.89 | |
| Republican | LeRoy G. Hoffman | 30,026 | 32.92 | |
| Republican | Clint Roberts | 14,774 | 16.20 | |
| Total votes | 91,223 | 100.00 | ||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Bill Janklow | 147,116 | 56.63 | |||
| Democratic | Roger D. McKellips | 112,679 | 43.37 | |||
| Total votes | 259,795 | 100.00 | ||||
| Republican gain from Democratic | ||||||
The governor of South Dakota is the head of government of South Dakota. The governor is elected to a four-year term in even years when there is no presidential election. The current governor is Kristi Noem, a member of the Republican Party who took office on January 5, 2019.
William John Janklow was an American lawyer and politician and member of the Republican Party who holds the record for the longest tenure as Governor of South Dakota: sixteen years in office. Janklow had the third-longest gubernatorial tenure in post-Constitutional U.S. history at 5,851 days.
The 1978 United States Senate elections were held on November 7, in the middle of Democratic President Jimmy Carter's term. The 33 seats of Class 2 were contested in regular elections. Special elections were also held to fill vacancies.
The structure of the government of South Dakota is based on that of the federal government, with three branches of government: executive, legislative, and judicial. The structure of the state government is laid out in the Constitution of South Dakota, the highest law in the state. The constitution may be amended either by a majority vote of both houses of the legislature, or by voter initiative.
The 2002 United States House of Representatives election in South Dakota took place on Tuesday, November 5, 2002. Voters selected a representative for their single At-Large district, who ran on a statewide ballot.
The 2004 South Dakota's at-large congressional district special election was held on July 12, 2004 to select the successor to Republican Representative Bill Janklow who resigned on July 11, 2004, following a conviction of vehicular manslaughter after an accident that had occurred months earlier, creating an open seat and necessitating a special election. Each party held a nominating convention to choose their nominee for the special election. Republicans selected state Senator Larry Diedrich over Barbara Everist, also a member of the South Dakota State Senate, as their nominee while Democrats chose attorney Stephanie Herseth, who had unsuccessfully challenged Janklow in 2002.
The 2014 South Dakota gubernatorial election took place on November 4, 2014, to elect the Governor and Lieutenant Governor of South Dakota, concurrently with the election of South Dakota's Class II U.S. Senate seat, as well as other elections to the United States Senate in other states and elections to the United States House of Representatives and various state and local elections.
Larry Rhoden is an American politician and businessman serving as the 39th lieutenant governor of South Dakota since 2019.
The 1994 South Dakota gubernatorial election took place on November 8, 1994 to elect a Governor of South Dakota. Republican former Governor Bill Janklow was elected, defeating Democratic nominee Jim Beddow.
Bernie P. Hunhoff is an American politician and a former Democratic member of the South Dakota Senate representing District 18 from 1993 to 1999 and 2015 to 2017. Hunhoff was also a member of the South Dakota House of Representatives for District 18 from 2009 to 2015. He served as the House minority leader during that time.
Dan Lederman is an American politician who served as a Republican member of the South Dakota Senate representing District 16 from January 11, 2011, until he resigned on March 30, 2015. Lederman served consecutively in the South Dakota Legislature from January 2009 until January 11, 2011, in the South Dakota House of Representatives District 16 seat.
Phyllis M. Heineman is an American politician and a Republican member of the South Dakota Senate representing District 13 since January 11, 2011. Heineman served non-consecutively in the South Dakota Legislature from her appointment by Governor of South Dakota Bill Janklow November 2, 1999 to fill the vacancy caused by the resignation of Dana John Windhorst until January 2009 in the South Dakota House of Representatives District 13 seat.
The 1990 South Dakota gubernatorial election took place on November 6, 1990, to elect a Governor of South Dakota. Republican Governor George S. Mickelson was re-elected, defeating Democratic nominee Bob L. Samuelson. As of 2024, this was the last time Oglala County and Todd County voted for a Republican gubernatorial candidate. Mickelson died in a plane crash near Zwingle, Iowa on April 19, 1993.
The 1986 South Dakota gubernatorial election was held on November 4, 1986 to elect the Governor of South Dakota. Incumbent Bill Janklow was term-limited, so the field for the new governor was open. Republican nominee George S. Mickelson was elected, defeating Democratic nominee Ralph Lars Herseth.
The 1982 South Dakota gubernatorial elections were held on November 2, 1982, to elect a Governor of South Dakota. Republican candidate Bill Janklow was elected, defeating Democratic nominee Mike O'Connor to take a second term in office.
The 1972 United States Senate election in South Dakota took place on November 7, 1972, concurrently with the U.S. presidential election as well as other elections to the United States Senate in other states as well as elections to the United States House of Representatives and various state and local elections.
The 1964 South Dakota gubernatorial election was held on November 3, 1964.
The 1954 South Dakota gubernatorial election was held on November 2, 1954.
The 1918 South Dakota gubernatorial election was held on November 5, 1918. Incumbent Republican Governor Peter Norbeck ran for re-election to a second term. He won the Republican primary unopposed and faced Nonpartisan League candidate Mark P. Bates, a farmer, and Democratic nominee James E. Bird in the general election. Norbeck's share of the vote decreased from 1916 to 53%, but he benefited from the split field. Bates placed second with 26% of the vote, while Bird placed third with 19% of the vote.
