Secretary of State and Board of Elections public hearings this week on hot topics

The Secretary of State and Board of Elections are meeting this week on some big issues, according to the South Dakota Register, including the rules to lower the cost of obtaining a voter list, what the process of selecting a Lt. Governor will look like for Gubernatorial Candidates, and what the rules are for disqualifying a voter:

• Tomorrow, on August 12th, the Office of the Secretary of State will hold a hearing to Amend or repeal rules to lower the cost of obtaining a voter registration list; lower the cost of obtaining an absentee voter list; remove the bond requirement from obtaining a notary public certification; and remove the bond requirement associated with a notary public change record; (52 SDR 4, July 14, 2025)
• On Thursday, August 14th, the South Dakota Board of Elections (Office of the Secretary of State): Amend and adopt rules to provide for the registration of a federal voter; require that the signer’s address on a petition and the signer’s voter registration address be substantially the same; allow partisan candidates for Governor to nominate a candidate for lieutenant governor; require a description of the location of an applicant’s residence and provide for the designation of a federal voter on an absentee ballot application form; require a description of the location of an applicant’s residence and include an updated list of political parties on an in-office absentee ballot application form; provide instructions for a petition for recount that require that legislative candidates file a petition with the secretary of state; allow for the right to vote of any registered voter to be challenged; prepare an application to allow the right to vote of any registered voter to be challenged; establish a list to specify the documentation that must be provided as evidence for a voter registration challenge; establish a list to specify the documentation that must be provided to demonstrate a challenged voter’s qualifications as a registered voter; and establish guidelines for county auditors to use when determining the validity of a voter registration challenge (52 SDR 4, July 14, 2025).