Ed. Note: Updated to include all precincts counted.
South Dakota Democrat Stephanie Herseth narrowly defeated a Republican rival
in a special U.S. House election on Tuesday that saw a high turnout except
among Indian voters.
With all precincts reporting, Herseth had 132,377 votes, or
51 percent, compared to 129,396 votes, or 49 percent, for challenger
Larry Diedrich. Turnout was high across the state as voters
flocked to the polls to choose a replacement for
Bill Janklow, the Republican who resigned in January after being
convicted of felony manslaughter.
But in a state where Indian voters determined the outcome of the
close 2000 U.S. Senate election, the reservation turnout fell
far below the state average of 56 percent. Based on the latest
results from the Secretary of State, heavily Indian counties saw
as little as 30 percent voter participation.
In Todd County, home to the Rosebud Sioux Reservation, turnout was
39 percent. The county is 85 percent Indian.
In nearby Shannon County, home to the Pine Ridge Reservation, the
turnout was much lower at 30.7 percent. The county is 94 percent
Indian.
The pattern was repeated in other counties with significant
Indian populations. The turnout in Corson County, home
to the Standing Rock Sioux Reservation, was a mere 40 percent.
Indians make up 60 percent of the population in the county.
On the Cheyenne River Sioux Reservation, turnout in Dewey
County was just 42.7 percent while in Ziebach County, it was
44.3 percent. The two counties are 74 percent and 72 percent
Indian, respectively.
Only Bennett County, where Indian voters have gone to the polls
to elect Indian officials, beat the trend. The county, which is
52 percent Indian, had a turnout of 62 percent.
And in Charles Mix County, which has a majority non-Indian population
but has a significant Indian presence thanks to the Yankton
Sioux Reservation, the turnout was 61 percent.
Despite the low participation, Indian voters chose
Herseth over Diedrich by wide margins.
In Shannon County, she won 94 percent of the vote while
in Todd County, she won 84 percent.
In Dewey County, Herseth had 75 percent of the vote
and in Ziebach County, she won 69 percent.
Herseth's support was high in the counties of
Bennett (60 percent) and Corson (56 percent)
but she lost Charles Mix to Diedrich by just five votes.
The county has seen strained relations among Indians
and non-Indians in recent years.
In the 2000 U.S. Senate race, Indian voters overwhelmingly chose Democrat
Tim Johnson, who defeated Republican
John Thune by just 524 votes.
The close results have the
Democrat and Republican parties angling for support among
the state's nine reservations in the upcoming
matchup between Thune and Sen. Tom Daschle, a Democrat.
Based on Tuesday's results and those from 2000, Republicans
will have a harder time convincing Indian voters to switch
parties. Both Thune and Daschle say Indian issues are
top priority. The state's Indian population is about 9 percent.
As for Herseth, 33, she will be immediately sworn in to serve
the seven months left in Janklow's failed term. She will
have to compete for the state's sole House seat again in November.
South Dakota Election Results:
Statewide |
County Turnout |
More Results
Relevant Links:
Stephanie Herseth -
http://www.hersethforcongress.org
Larry Diedrich -
http://www.diedrichforcongress.com
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