Elections / 1976 · President · SD
South Dakota — 1976 presidential election
Recent presidential results
Akashicstate1976 presidential electionSouth Dakota · PresidentFordR+1.5
How it voted
Share of the 1976 vote
| Gerald Ford ✓Republican | 50.4% | 151,505 |
|---|---|---|
| Jimmy CarterDemocratic | 48.9% | 147,068 |
| OtherAll other candidates | 0.7% | 2,105 |
1976presidential margin
D+60R+60
66 counties, each filled by 1976 D-vs-R margin. Hover any county for its result.
South Dakota cast 4 electoral votes this cycle.
County-level results (66 counties) — table
| County | Winner | Margin |
|---|---|---|
| Aurora County, SD | Democratic | D+20.8 |
| Beadle County, SD | Democratic | D+0.9 |
| Bennett County, SD | Republican | R+11.6 |
| Bon Homme County, SD | Democratic | D+6.3 |
| Brookings County, SD | Republican | R+5.9 |
| Brown County, SD | Democratic | D+7.7 |
| Brule County, SD | Democratic | D+13.2 |
| Buffalo County, SD | Democratic | D+10.6 |
| Butte County, SD | Republican | R+19.8 |
| Campbell County, SD | Republican | R+29.3 |
| Charles Mix County, SD | Democratic | D+18.5 |
| Clark County, SD | Republican | R+2.6 |
| Clay County, SD | Republican | R+1.0 |
| Codington County, SD | Democratic | D+1.9 |
| Corson County, SD | Democratic | D+6.6 |
| Custer County, SD | Republican | R+15.7 |
| Davison County, SD | Democratic | D+10.0 |
| Day County, SD | Democratic | D+23.3 |
| Deuel County, SD | Democratic | D+10.9 |
| Dewey County, SD | Republican | R+7.4 |
| Douglas County, SD | Republican | R+14.8 |
| Edmunds County, SD | Democratic | D+11.4 |
| Fall River County, SD | Republican | R+14.1 |
| Faulk County, SD | Democratic | D+10.1 |
| Grant County, SD | Democratic | D+7.8 |
| Gregory County, SD | Democratic | D+5.8 |
| Haakon County, SD | Republican | R+25.5 |
| Hamlin County, SD | Republican | R+1.7 |
| Hand County, SD | Republican | R+1.1 |
| Hanson County, SD | Democratic | D+18.3 |
| Harding County, SD | Republican | R+1.2 |
| Hughes County, SD | Republican | R+22.8 |
| Hutchinson County, SD | Republican | R+15.5 |
| Hyde County, SD | Republican | R+9.1 |
| Jackson County, SD | Republican | R+12.4 |
| Jerauld County, SD | Democratic | D+1.4 |
| Jones County, SD | Republican | R+15.8 |
| Kingsbury County, SD | Republican | R+2.3 |
| Lake County, SD | Democratic | D+7.3 |
| Lawrence County, SD | Republican | R+14.8 |
| Lincoln County, SD | Republican | R+2.4 |
| Lyman County, SD | Republican | R+3.5 |
| Marshall County, SD | Democratic | D+16.4 |
| McCook County, SD | Democratic | D+2.2 |
| McPherson County, SD | Republican | R+40.9 |
| Meade County, SD | Republican | R+10.9 |
| Mellette County, SD | Republican | R+8.3 |
| Miner County, SD | Democratic | D+21.0 |
| Minnehaha County, SD | Republican | R+2.7 |
| Moody County, SD | Democratic | D+13.6 |
| Oglala Lakota County, SD | Democratic | D+42.1 |
| Pennington County, SD | Republican | R+13.9 |
| Perkins County, SD | Republican | R+1.4 |
| Potter County, SD | Republican | R+11.1 |
| Roberts County, SD | Democratic | D+20.2 |
| Sanborn County, SD | Democratic | D+7.5 |
| Spink County, SD | Democratic | D+13.8 |
| Stanley County, SD | Republican | R+7.5 |
| Sully County, SD | Republican | R+11.0 |
| Todd County, SD | Democratic | D+16.9 |
| Tripp County, SD | Republican | R+4.1 |
| Turner County, SD | Republican | R+17.1 |
| Union County, SD | Democratic | D+5.0 |
| Walworth County, SD | Republican | R+18.0 |
| Yankton County, SD | Republican | R+0.5 |
| Ziebach County, SD | Democratic | D+0.1 |
complete certified result
South Dakota candidate results
Top three shown first · expand for every reported candidate and write-in category
Source: MIT Election Data + Science Lab — U.S. President 1976–2024 state candidate returns
Nominees: Jimmy Carter (D) · Gerald Ford (R)
South Dakota's presidential margins
1892–2024, the 1976 contest in context
| Year | Margin (D minus R) |
|---|---|
| 1892 | −36.5% |
| 1896 | +0.2% |
| 1900 | −15.6% |
| 1904 | −49.4% |
| 1908 | −23.8% |
| 1912 | +42.1% |
| 1916 | −3.9% |
| 1920 | −41.0% |
| 1924 | −36.3% |
| 1928 | −21.0% |
| 1932 | +29.2% |
| 1936 | +11.5% |
| 1940 | −14.8% |
| 1944 | −16.7% |
| 1948 | −4.8% |
| 1952 | −38.5% |
| 1956 | −16.8% |
| 1960 | −16.4% |
| 1964 | +11.2% |
| 1968 | −11.3% |
| 1972 | −8.6% |
| 1976 | −1.5% |
| 1980 | −28.8% |
| 1984 | −26.5% |
| 1988 | −6.3% |
| 1992 | −3.5% |
| 1996 | −3.5% |
| 2000 | −22.7% |
| 2004 | −21.3% |
| 2008 | −8.4% |
| 2012 | −18.0% |
| 2016 | −29.8% |
| 2020 | −26.2% |
| 2024 | −29.2% |
County-by-county results — 66 counties
| County | Won | Margin | Democratic | Republican | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aurora County | D | 1,269 | 831 | 2,109 | |
| Beadle County | D | 4,846 | 4,758 | 9,666 | |
| Bennett County | R | 481 | 610 | 1,111 | |
| Bon Homme County | D | 2,154 | 1,897 | 4,073 | |
| Brookings County | R | 4,685 | 5,278 | 10,026 | |
| Brown County | D | 8,888 | 7,609 | 16,633 | |
| Brule County | D | 1,534 | 1,175 | 2,723 | |
| Buffalo County | D | 240 | 194 | 434 | |
| Butte County | R | 1,366 | 2,055 | 3,472 | |
| Campbell County | R | 489 | 897 | 1,391 | |
| Charles Mix County | D | 2,593 | 1,779 | 4,394 | |
| Clark County | R | 1,376 | 1,449 | 2,838 | |
| Clay County | R | 2,593 | 2,647 | 5,301 | |
| Codington County | D | 4,680 | 4,504 | 9,213 | |
| Corson County | D | 967 | 846 | 1,823 | |
| Custer County | R | 995 | 1,373 | 2,405 | |
| Davison County | D | 4,510 | 3,688 | 8,248 | |
| Day County | D | 2,610 | 1,617 | 4,257 | |
| Deuel County | D | 1,465 | 1,177 | 2,652 | |
| Dewey County | R | 706 | 820 | 1,534 | |
| Douglas County | R | 975 | 1,315 | 2,295 | |
| Edmunds County | D | 1,629 | 1,294 | 2,932 | |
| Fall River County | R | 1,537 | 2,046 | 3,615 | |
| Faulk County | D | 1,063 | 868 | 1,937 | |
| Grant County | D | 2,398 | 2,051 | 4,464 | |
| Gregory County | D | 1,658 | 1,475 | 3,145 | |
| Haakon County | R | 477 | 812 | 1,312 | |
| Hamlin County | R | 1,402 | 1,452 | 2,866 | |
| Hand County | R | 1,477 | 1,510 | 2,994 | |
| Hanson County | D | 1,005 | 693 | 1,707 | |
| Harding County | R | 459 | 470 | 945 | |
| Hughes County | R | 2,506 | 3,997 | 6,536 | |
| Hutchinson County | R | 2,062 | 2,822 | 4,906 | |
| Hyde County | R | 572 | 687 | 1,263 | |
| Jackson County | R | 589 | 761 | 1,391 | |
| Jerauld County | D | 845 | 821 | 1,669 | |
| Jones County | R | 374 | 515 | 890 | |
| Kingsbury County | R | 1,762 | 1,844 | 3,617 | |
| Lake County | D | 2,930 | 2,530 | 5,476 | |
| Lawrence County | R | 3,102 | 4,206 | 7,449 | |
| Lincoln County | R | 2,957 | 3,105 | 6,084 | |
| Lyman County | R | 831 | 892 | 1,739 | |
| Marshall County | D | 1,721 | 1,233 | 2,967 | |
| McCook County | D | 1,822 | 1,744 | 3,578 | |
| McPherson County | R | 693 | 1,662 | 2,367 | |
| Meade County | R | 2,478 | 3,096 | 5,690 | |
| Mellette County | R | 429 | 508 | 949 | |
| Miner County | D | 1,289 | 839 | 2,140 | |
| Minnehaha County | R | 22,068 | 23,286 | 45,556 | |
| Moody County | D | 1,942 | 1,475 | 3,428 | |
| Oglala Lakota County | D | 756 | 301 | 1,081 | |
| Pennington County | R | 10,058 | 13,352 | 23,699 | |
| Perkins County | R | 1,262 | 1,298 | 2,592 | |
| Potter County | R | 908 | 1,136 | 2,052 | |
| Roberts County | D | 2,890 | 1,915 | 4,820 | |
| Sanborn County | D | 1,025 | 881 | 1,912 | |
| Spink County | D | 2,650 | 2,003 | 4,679 | |
| Stanley County | R | 548 | 637 | 1,189 | |
| Sully County | R | 505 | 630 | 1,139 | |
| Todd County | D | 826 | 583 | 1,434 | |
| Tripp County | R | 1,822 | 1,980 | 3,817 | |
| Turner County | R | 1,906 | 2,694 | 4,618 | |
| Union County | D | 2,540 | 2,297 | 4,860 | |
| Walworth County | R | 1,516 | 2,187 | 3,728 | |
| Yankton County | R | 3,987 | 4,029 | 8,087 | |
| Ziebach County | D | 370 | 369 | 761 |
Same ballot, 1976SD
Source. MIT Election Data + Science Lab — 1976 presidential returns · official county-level results. Real returns — nothing estimated.