South Dakota voters can now cast absentee ballots for the Nov. 3 general election, with the state’s absentee period having opened Friday, Sept. 18. The Secretary of State’s 2026 election information sets the next major deadline: voter registration must be completed by Oct. 19.
The opening matters because South Dakota treats in-person absentee voting as an option at county auditors’ offices, not only as a mail process. The state’s absentee-voting guidance says registered voters may vote at their county auditor’s office once absentee voting begins. Voters should bring a valid photo ID; anyone without one must be offered a personal-identification affidavit and a regular ballot.
Voters who want a ballot mailed to them must print and sign the state application, then send the original to their county election official. Except for military and overseas voters, the state does not allow the application to be submitted by email or fax. The official absentee ballot request form and instructions require either a copy of an accepted photo ID or a signature sworn before a notary.
The application may be filed as late as 5 p.m. or the end of regular office hours, whichever is later, on Nov. 2. That is a legal cutoff, not a practical mail recommendation: completed ballots must reach the county auditor early enough on Election Day to be delivered to the voter’s precinct before polls close. Ballots arriving after the county’s polls close are not counted, according to the same state instructions.
Registration requires an original signature
People who are not registered, have moved or need to update their name should act well before Oct. 19. South Dakota’s registration instructions say a signed paper form with an original signature must be received by the county auditor 15 days before the election. The state does not accept voter-registration forms by fax or email.
The registration page also reflects a 2026 change. New applicants who do not provide documentary proof of citizenship are designated as federal-only voters. The state lists qualifying documents that include certain state driver licenses or nondriver IDs, tribal IDs, birth certificates, U.S. passports and naturalization certificates. That status affects which contests a voter may participate in, so applicants with questions should contact their county auditor before the deadline rather than wait for an application to be processed.
For absentee requests, accepted identification includes a South Dakota driver license or nondriver ID, a U.S. passport or other federal photo ID, a military ID, a current student ID from a South Dakota high school or college, and a tribal photo ID. A new absentee application is required each calendar year.
The practical sequence is straightforward: check registration through the state’s Voter Information Portal, update it by Oct. 19 if necessary, and then choose between voting at the county auditor’s office or mailing the signed absentee request. Anyone using mail should allow time for both the application and completed ballot to travel, because Election Day postmarks do not extend South Dakota’s receipt deadline.
