Recent razor-thin result is a reminder of the importance of voting

Sometimes voting in South Dakota can seem like a lost cause. With Republicans dominating every state and national elected office, it seems like a foregone conclusion that they will win again. It’s easy to make excuses for sitting out this election. 

Part of the problem is the less than stellar job that members of the state’s Democratic Party have done in recruiting candidates. Their candidate for U.S. Senate decided to call it a day, and they didn’t field a candidate for state attorney general. In the state legislative races, Democrats are running for 44 of the 105 seats in the Legislature. That means 58% of those seats won’t have a Democrat on the ballot competing for your vote. In many districts, seats in the Legislature were decided in the Republican primary.

If every Democrat on the legislative part of the ballot is elected, Republicans will still ease their way into automatic majorities in the House and Senate. Fortunately for voters, there’s more to hold your interest on Election Day than just seeing which Republican will be elected to office for the next two, four or six years. Even in a blushingly red state like South Dakota, there may be reasons for some Republican candidates to feel uneasy. 

It wasn’t too long ago that the city of Sioux Falls almost elected a Democrat as its next mayor. City elections are supposed to be nonpartisan, but some of the Republican candidates in the gubernatorial primary felt like it was their job to endorse the Republican in that race. 

Democrats have every right to feel good about one of their own coming so close to running the state’s largest city. Republicans who have dominated state politics for so long will be forgiven for feeling a little queasy about that outcome and what it might mean for the general election. 

Nicole Gronli, the Democratic candidate for the U.S. House, and Brian Bengs, the independent candidate for the U.S. Senate, have been touting polls that show them closing in on their opponents. Any candidate’s polling has to be taken with a grain of salt, but, in a year when there is supposed to be a “blue wave,” Republicans Marty Jackley and Mike Rounds may not have the easy road to victory that candidates from their party have enjoyed in the past. How much more interesting the politics in this state would be if having an “R” next to your name didn’t ensure an automatic win. 

The political competition doesn’t stop at the top of the ballot. During this election, many county races will be decided, too. Races for sheriff, auditor and county commissioner have a direct bearing on your safety and how your local tax dollars will be spent. 

In some communities, the election for city council members will be held in conjunction with the general election. The candidates chosen by voters in those nonpartisan elections will have a direct influence on the spending of local tax dollars. 

South Dakota voters will also be making decisions about four state constitutional amendments. They’ll decide the fate of a trust fund for unclaimed property, a back door method for getting the state out of funding expanded Medicaid, a measure that mirrors a law that already bars noncitizens from voting in South Dakota elections and an amendment that makes it tougher to change the state constitution by requiring a 60% favorable vote. 

No matter what you may think about the need for these particular amendments, it’s plain that they touch on important issues of our day — state funding, access to Medicaid, voting rights and citizen access to changing the state constitution. The amendments alone are reason enough to show up on Election Day. 

Or show up sooner. Early voting is going on now and absentee ballots are also available. If you’re not registered to vote, get registered. The deadline is Oct. 19.

Making what you consider to be the right choices on the ballot requires some work on your part. Get a sample ballot at your courthouse to look over the candidates and the issues. Attend candidate forums or debates. You’ll make an informed decision by spending some time studying the candidates and the issues. South Dakota Searchlight offers an extensive Voter Guide with explanations of the constitutional amendments, links to the candidates’ websites and links to past news coverage. 

There’s too much at stake in this election to just sit on the sidelines. As citizens, it’s our duty to play a part in the election process. Remember the outcome of the mayoral election in Sioux Falls. It was decided by a handful of votes. That’s a wonderful example of every vote counting. Make sure yours gets counted, too.