2026 South Dakota Amendment L

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2026 South Dakota Amendment L

November 3, 2026
60% Vote Requirement for Constitutional Amendments Measure

South Dakota Amendment L, also known as the 60% Vote Requirement for Constitutional Amendments Measure, is an legislatively referred constitutional amendment that will appear on the ballot in the U.S. state of South Dakota on November 3, 2026, concurrent with the 2026 United States elections.

House vote on HJR 5003
Jan 22,
2025
Party Total votes
Republican Democratic
Yea 60 1 61
Nay 0 5 5
No vote 3 0 3
Result: Passed
Roll call vote[1]
RepresentativePartyDistrictVote
Eric EmeryD26th–ANay
Jim HalversonR21stExcused
Erin HealyD10thNay
Mellissa HeermannR7thExcused
Liz Marty MayR27thExcused
Erik MuckeyD15thNay
Peri PourierD27thYea
Nicole Uhre-BalkD32ndNay
Kadyn WittmanD15thNay

All other votes are Republican yeas.

Senate vote on HJR 5003
Mar 10,
2025
Party Total votes
Republican Democratic
Yea 29 0 29
Nay 2 2 4
No vote 1 1 2
Result: Passed
Roll call vote[2]
SenatorPartyDistrictVote
Red Dawn FosterD27thExcused
Liz LarsonD10thNay
Michael RohlR1stExcused
Kyle SchoenfishR19thNay
Jamie SmithD10thNay
David WheelerR22ndNay

All other votes are Republican yeas.

Currently in South Dakota, constitutional amendments can be placed on the ballot by the South Dakota Legislature. Voters can approve or reject amendments if the amendment reaches 50% of votes cast. Amendment L was first placed on the ballot after it was approved by the legislature in early 2025.[3]

Impact

If approved by voters, the threshold that amendments must reach to be approved would be raised from 50% to 60%.[4]

Campaign

The Voter Defense Association of South Dakota launched a campaign against the amendment in May 2025. The president of the organization argued that raising the threshold would weaken the ballot initiative process.[5]

Endorsements

References

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