Secretary of State's Office warned Legislature more than a year ago about ballot delays
Lawmakers rejected Monae Johnson's efforts to change petition deadlines, registered mail loophole
The South Dakota Secretary of State’s Office warned last year that state election deadlines were too close to the start of early voting.
The office tried to get the candidate filing deadline changed from the last Tuesday of March to the third Tuesday of March, warning that the upcoming 2026 primary was too close to the start of early voting, with the final Tuesday falling on March 31 – the fifth Tuesday of the month. Deputy Secretary of State Tom Deadrick told lawmakers it would be “impossible” to get ballots in time for the start of early voting.
Deadrick handed out a calendar to lawmakers to illustrate his point.
Convicted child rapist, fentanyl dealer was slated for deportation
A convicted child rapist who is on his way to prison for distributing fentanyl was scheduled to be deported before his most recent run-in with the law, The Dakota Scout has learned.
