South Dakota Holds GOP Gubernatorial Primary Runoff Between Rhoden and Doeden

South Dakota held a Republican gubernatorial primary runoff on July 28, 2026, between incumbent Gov. Larry Rhoden and businessman and political newcomer Toby Doeden. Rhoden became governor in 2025 after Kristi Noem resigned to become U.S. homeland security secretary, and he was seeking his first full term. The runoff followed a first-round primary held June 2, 2026, in which no candidate reached the required 35% vote threshold to win outright. The general election is scheduled for November 3, 2026. In the initial primary, Rhoden fended off a challenge from Rep. Dusty Johnson and two other candidates, with Doeden advancing to face him in the runoff. During the runoff campaign, Rhoden received endorsements from the South Dakota Fraternal Order of Police and Sioux Falls Mayor Christine Erickson, while Donald Trump endorsed Doeden. Separately, as governor, Rhoden signed anti-doxxing legislation—HB 1084 and HB 1298—making it a crime to maliciously publish personal information about law enforcement officers and judges online, effective July 1, 2026. His budget also allocated $13.2 million to staff a new women's prison opening in Rapid City in 2026, $5 million for a new Highway Patrol aircraft, and $2.4 million to expand the National Guard Readiness Center in Sturgis. The outcome of the July 28 runoff was not confirmed in the available reporting, leaving the identity of the Republican nominee for the November general election unresolved. It also remains unclear how the endorsements from Trump, the Fraternal Order of Police, and Mayor Erickson affected turnout or the final result. The Republican nominee will face opponents in the November 3, 2026 general election, though other candidates in that race were not specified in the available sources.