Pierre, South Dakota — South Dakota Secretary of State Monae Johnson, a Republican, has endorsed Democrat Terrence Davis to succeed her, an unusual cross-party move from the state’s top elections official.
Johnson announced Saturday that she was backing Davis over Republican nominee Heather Baxter, saying her experience running the office changed her views about what the job requires. “I understand that this decision will disappoint some people in my party and anger others,” she wrote.
Johnson first won office in 2022 with support from activists who questioned voting machines and pushed for hand-counting ballots after Donald Trump’s false claims about widespread fraud in the 2020 election. Once in office, however, Johnson oversaw statewide post-election audits and came to publicly support “secure, tested ballot tabulators.”
That shift contributed to her losing the Republican nomination in June to Baxter, who has advocated expanded hand-counting and other election-integrity measures. Johnson did not name Baxter in her endorsement statement but said South Dakota needs a secretary of state who will “strengthen confidence through performance rather than provocation.”
Davis, a former state trooper, supports policies including automatic voter registration at age 18. Baxter has emphasized voter identification, paper ballots and proof-of-citizenship requirements, although South Dakota already requires several of those safeguards. Libertarian Tamara Lesnar is also running.
Absentee voting began Sept. 18, and South Dakota’s general election is Nov. 3. The voter registration deadline is Oct. 19.
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