South Dakota's at-large congressional district is the sole congressional district for the state of

South Dakota South Dakota (; Sioux: , ) is a U.S. state in the North Central region of the United States. It is also part of the Great Plains. South Dakota is named after the Lakota and Dakota Sioux Native American tribes, who comprise a large porti ...

. Based on area, it is the fourth largest

congressional district Congressional districts, also known as electoral districts and legislative districts, electorates, or wards in other nations, are divisions of a larger administrative region that represent the population of a region in the larger congressional bod ...

in the nation. The district is currently represented by

Dusty Johnson Dustin M. Johnson (born September 30, 1976) is an American politician serving as the U.S. representative for South Dakota's at-large congressional district since 2019. A member of the Republican Party, he served as South Dakota Public Utilitie ...

History

The district was created when South Dakota achieved statehood on November 2, 1889, electing two members at-large (statewide). Following the 1910 Census a third seat was gained, with the legislature drawing three separate districts. The third district was eliminated after the 1930 Census. As a result of the redistricting cycle after the

1980 Census The United States census of 1980, conducted by the Census Bureau, determined the resident population of the United States to be 226,545,805, an increase of 11.4 percent over the 203,184,772 persons enumerated during the 1970 census. It was th ...

, the second seat was eliminated, creating a single at-large district. Since 1983, South Dakota has retained a single congressional district.

Voter registration

Statewide election results

Election history

2004 special

Incumbent

U.S. Representative The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the Senate being the upper chamber. Together they c ...

Bill Janklow resigned the seat on January 20, 2004, after he was convicted of second-degree manslaughter, triggering a special election. Democrat Stephanie Herseth was selected as the Democratic nominee for this special election and she defeated

Republican Republican can refer to: Political ideology * An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law. ** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or agains ...

Larry Diedrich with 51 percent of the vote in a close-fought election on June 1, 2004. Herseth's victory briefly gave the state its first all-Democratic congressional delegation since 1937.

2004 general

In the November general election, Herseth was elected to a full term with 53.4 percent of the vote, an increase of a few percentage points compared with the even closer June special elections. Herseth's vote margin in June was about 3,000 votes, but by November it had grown to over 29,000. Herseth thereby became the first woman in state history to win a full term in the U.S. Congress. Both elections were hard-fought and close compared to many House races in the rest of the United States, and the special election was watched closely by a national audience. The general election was also viewed as one of the most competitive in the country, but was overshadowed in the state by the highly competitive

U.S. Senate The United States Senate is the upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the House of Representatives being the lower chamber. Together they compose the national bicameral legislature of the United States. The composition and pow ...

race between Democrat Tom Daschle and Republican

John Thune John Randolph Thune ( ; born January 7, 1961) is an American politician and businessman serving as the senior United States senator from South Dakota, a seat he has held since 2005, and as the Senate minority whip since 2021. A member of the Re ...

, which Thune narrowly won.

2006

2008

2010

2012

2014

2016

2018

2020

2022

List of members representing the district

1889–1913: Two then three seats

Two seats were created in 1889. In 1913, the two at-large seats were replaced by three districts. There were no at-large seats, therefore, until 1983.

1983–present: One seat

By 1983, the remaining two district seats were reduced to one at-large seat.

References

* *
Congressional Biographical Directory of the United States 1774–present

External links

2004 campaign finance data
{{coord, 44.5, -100, display=title At-large At-large United States congressional districts Constituencies established in 1889 1889 establishments in South Dakota Constituencies disestablished in 1913 1913 disestablishments in South Dakota Constituencies established in 1983 1983 establishments in South Dakota