(Intro)

Hi South Dakota. So, you wanna vote! Well, before you vote, you've gotta make sure that you are registered to vote. And if you're not sure if you're registered already, you can check using the link down in the description. If you're not registered, or if you've moved or changed your name since the last time you voted, you'll need to fill out a registration form. To register in South Dakota, you're going to have to fill out a form on actual paper. Probably the easiest way to do it, as long as you have a printer and a stamp, is to print out the form that's linked below and mail it in. You can also fill out a form in person at your County auditor's office, city finance office, driver's license office, or public assistance agency. There's a link to all their locations and hours below. Either way you register, you gotta do it by October 24th if you want to vote in the November presidential election.

Once you're registered, that's when you get to vote. If you want to vote without even having to leave your house, you can download an absentee ballot application in the links below, fill it out, and mail it to your county election official. You can technically mail it in all the way up until November 7th, but the sooner the better. Your ballot will just show up in the mail, and you can fill it out at your own pace, do all the research you want, and then send it back, or drop it off at your County Elections office by November 8th. It's that easy.

If you want to vote in person on November 8th, though, polls are open from 7 am to 7 pm and you can figure out where you're supposed to go at the link in the description, or though South Dakota's Vote 605 App - download links below. If you want to vote in person, you'll need to bring an ID with you, like a driver's license, or state ID, military ID, student ID from a high school or college in South Dakota, or tribal ID. If you don't have any of those, you can still sign a personal identification affidavit, basically a promise saying that you are who you say you are, and they will allow you to vote.

You should also consider bringing a sample ballot with you. You can find one on the same website you used to look up your polling place or on the Vote 605 app. It'll tell you everything that you'll be able to vote for in addition to the presidential election. You don't have to vote for every single thing on the ballot, but if you want a chance to do some research on the candidates and issues in your local elections, it's a pretty good idea to look at a sample ballot first. And you can even fill it out at home and bring it with you to the polls, if you want to remember exactly how you wanted to vote. There will be links for everything you need to check your registration, vote absentee, or find your polling locations in description. Thank you for voting.