Republicans Running for Governor Shrug at SOS Johnson’s Illegal Delay of Early Voting

Secretary of State Monae Johnson botches her job, breaks the law, and denies South Dakotans the full early-voting period to which they are legally entitled, and the Republican candidates for Governor shrug:

“It shouldn’t be that complicated to follow them and make the deadlines in a way so people can get the things done that they need to,” Toby Doeden said Thursday.

“Initially I was concerned, but I, they got things lined out in very good shape, I think, and so I was pretty pleased with the outcome,” Larry Rhoden said Thursday.

“We just had an issue with the calendar and how our statutes are written and then, of course, how that played out this election cycle,” Jon Hansen said Thursday. “There’s still plenty of time between now and the June 2nd election day.”

“A couple-day delay is unfortunate, or three- or four- or five-day delay is unfortunate, we’re still going to have lots of opportunities for South Dakotans to make their voices heard at the ballot box,” Dusty Johnson said Wednesday [Michael Doorn and Dan Santella, “SD GOP Candidates Weigh in on Ballot Delay Issues,” KELO-TV, 2026.04.23].

Johnson and Hansen say it’s no big deal if the state doesn’t give you the full time the law guarantees you to vote. That’s like saying if you show up at the courthouse on Primary Day at 8:45 a.m. (in the legally mandated 7-a.m.-to-7-p.m. voting period, 8:45 a.m. is proportionate to failing to open early voting for the first seven days of the 46-day period) and find the doors locked, it’s no big deal, because you and the disappointed early birds who preceded you still have the rest of the day to come back and vote.

Doeden shifts the blame to whoever made the deadlines, even though no past Secretary of State has failed to meet them.

Rhoden says he’s pretty pleased, even though the outcome most threatens the voting rights of his rural West River neighbors:

In the vast, sparsely populated counties West River, voting by mail can make the process easier versus making a trip to the closest polling location. [Harding County auditor Kathy] Glines said each day passing without ballots makes this election less representative of rural communities.

“My concern right now is getting the mail out,” Glines said. “Of course, it’s rural delivery service, a lot of them only get mail two or three days a week, and of course they go a distance. Because of the way we’re right on the border, Reva is 25 miles away to the east, but it’s a -576 (zip code) instead of a -577 so then it’s got to route through North Dakota routes. It can take nine days for me to get mail to Reva, and then nine days back.”

In a 46-day early voting window, that can be a significant roadblock to the ballot box.

“That doesn’t count your weekends and all that,” Glines said. “That’s my biggest concern. I’m hoping we have adequate time to get the mail absentees out and back in” [C.J. Keene, “Some County Auditors Still Without Ballots a Week After Deadline,” SDPB, 2026.04.23].

Republicans are supposed to be hawks on government waste and inefficiency. Secretary of State Monae Johnson gets a $127,318.23 a year salary and a $4.73-million budget, and she can’t produce ballots for counties in time for the start of early voting—that’s inefficiency in spades. It’s not just a waste of money but a violation of the law. As good Republicans, Doeden, Hansen, Dusty Johnson, and Rhoden should be screaming.

But it’s just your right to vote being harmed, so Republicans don’t really care.