South Dakota’s GOP Pushes Voter Suppression Without Needing Supreme Court Backing

South Dakota is quietly advancing voter suppression tactics that echo the Trump administration’s broader assault on democracy — and they don’t even need the Supreme Court’s help to do it.

Governor Larry Rhoden, who was never elected but appointed after Kristi Noem left for a Trump administration job, recently signed a law requiring voters in state and local elections to prove their citizenship. This move is supposedly a response to “widespread” voting by noncitizens, a claim that falls flat under scrutiny.

Rachel Soulek, South Dakota’s Director of Elections, revealed that only one noncitizen had ever cast a ballot—and that was likely a clerical error during the 2016 general election. The Department of Public Safety’s data, which Rhoden cites as evidence, was riddled with mistakes. Yet the law remains on the books, erecting new barriers for voters, especially those registering after July 2025.

The law’s vague language has created a patchwork of inconsistent rules across counties. Some election officials demand voters show the physical driver’s license, others accept photocopies, and many don’t clarify what counts as valid proof. This confusion is no accident. It’s a deliberate tactic to intimidate and disenfranchise voters who might challenge the GOP’s hold on power.

Compounding the problem, Rhoden’s administration also passed a law allowing almost anyone to challenge another person’s voting eligibility, opening the door to harassment and voter intimidation.

South Dakota’s GOP is playing the same old game: weaponize baseless voter fraud claims to justify suppressive laws, sow confusion, and shrink the electorate to a manageable size. They claim to cherish democracy but act to undermine it whenever their grip on power is threatened.

As early and absentee voting begins ahead of the primary, South Dakota voters deserve clear guidance and protections — not more hurdles designed to keep them away from the polls. But with the Secretary of State’s office silent and local officials left to fend for themselves, the state’s democracy is under siege.

This is voter suppression in action. And it’s happening now.