2024 South Dakota Public Utilities Commission election
 | |||||||||||||||||||||
November 5, 2024
| |||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||
 County results Fiegen: 40–50% 50–60% 60–70% 70–80% 80–90% >90% Wilson: 50–60% 70–80% 80–90% | |||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||
| Elections in South Dakota |
|---|
 |
The 2024 South Dakota Public Utilities Commission election was held on November 5, 2024, to elect one of three members of the South Dakota Public Utilities Commission. Incumbent Republican Kristie Fiegen was re-elected to a third full term in office, defeating Democratic challenger Forrest Wilson in a landslide.[1] Fiegen was sworn in on January 13, 2025.[2]
Republican primary
[edit]Candidates
[edit]Nominee
[edit]- Kristie Fiegen, incumbent public utilities commissioner (2011–present)[3]
Democratic primary
[edit]Candidates
[edit]Nominee
[edit]- Forrest Wilson, director of the Lead-Deadwood Boys & Girls Club[4]
Libertarian primary
[edit]Candidates
[edit]Nominee
[edit]- Gideon Oakes, businessman and volunteer emergency medical technician[5]
General election
[edit]Results
[edit]| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Kristie Fiegen (incumbent) | 272,099 | 67.80% | +2.34% | |
| Democratic | Forrest Wilson | 108,029 | 26.92% | −7.62% | |
| Libertarian | Gideon Oakes | 21,176 | 5.28% | N/A | |
| Total votes | 401,304 | 100.00% | N/A | ||
| Republican hold | |||||
By county
[edit]| County[6] | Kristie Fiegen Republican |
Forrest Wilson Democratic |
Gideon Oakes Libertarian |
Margin | Total | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| # | % | # | % | # | % | # | % | ||
| Aurora | 1,034 | 78.87% | 239 | 18.23% | 38 | 2.90% | 795 | 60.64% | 1,311 |
| Beadle | 4,955 | 74.49% | 1,448 | 21.77% | 249 | 3.74% | 3,507 | 52.72% | 6,652 |
| Bennett | 588 | 59.82% | 347 | 35.30% | 48 | 4.88% | 241 | 24.52% | 983 |
| Bon Homme | 2,147 | 76.38% | 546 | 19.42% | 118 | 4.20% | 1,601 | 56.95% | 2,811 |
| Brookings | 9,191 | 65.76% | 4,126 | 29.52% | 659 | 4.72% | 5,065 | 36.24% | 13,976 |
| Brown | 10,628 | 66.87% | 4,567 | 28.74% | 698 | 4.39% | 6,061 | 38.14% | 15,893 |
| Brule | 1,719 | 75.13% | 481 | 21.02% | 88 | 3.85% | 1,238 | 54.11% | 2,288 |
| Buffalo | 166 | 37.22% | 261 | 58.52% | 19 | 4.26% | -95 | -21.30% | 446 |
| Butte | 3,719 | 77.80% | 735 | 15.38% | 326 | 6.82% | 2,984 | 62.43% | 4,780 |
| Campbell | 666 | 86.27% | 80 | 10.36% | 26 | 3.37% | 586 | 75.91% | 772 |
| Charles Mix | 2,511 | 72.45% | 846 | 24.41% | 109 | 3.14% | 1,665 | 48.04% | 3,466 |
| Clark | 1,324 | 78.02% | 313 | 18.44% | 60 | 3.54% | 1,011 | 59.58% | 1,697 |
| Clay | 2,743 | 52.19% | 2,272 | 43.23% | 241 | 4.59% | 471 | 8.96% | 5,256 |
| Codington | 9,220 | 74.34% | 2,672 | 21.54% | 511 | 4.12% | 6,548 | 52.79% | 12,403 |
| Corson | 595 | 54.69% | 437 | 40.17% | 56 | 5.15% | 158 | 14.52% | 1,088 |
| Custer | 3,971 | 69.52% | 1,163 | 20.36% | 578 | 10.12% | 2,808 | 49.16% | 5,712 |
| Davison | 6,283 | 74.13% | 1,850 | 21.83% | 343 | 4.05% | 4,433 | 52.30% | 8,476 |
| Day | 1,813 | 68.00% | 750 | 28.13% | 103 | 3.86% | 1,063 | 39.87% | 2,666 |
| Deuel | 1,645 | 76.30% | 389 | 18.04% | 122 | 5.66% | 1,256 | 58.26% | 2,156 |
| Dewey | 721 | 41.44% | 929 | 53.39% | 90 | 5.17% | -208 | -11.95% | 1,740 |
| Douglas | 1,417 | 89.46% | 143 | 9.03% | 24 | 1.52% | 1,274 | 80.43% | 1,584 |
| Edmunds | 1,544 | 81.09% | 304 | 15.97% | 56 | 2.94% | 1,240 | 65.13% | 1,904 |
| Fall River | 2,898 | 71.38% | 837 | 20.62% | 325 | 8.00% | 2,061 | 50.76% | 4,060 |
| Faulk | 869 | 82.76% | 149 | 14.19% | 32 | 3.05% | 720 | 68.57% | 1,050 |
| Grant | 2,537 | 75.84% | 667 | 19.94% | 141 | 4.22% | 1,870 | 55.90% | 3,345 |
| Gregory | 1,698 | 80.28% | 347 | 16.41% | 70 | 3.31% | 1,351 | 63.88% | 2,115 |
| Haakon | 963 | 90.08% | 73 | 6.83% | 33 | 3.09% | 890 | 83.26% | 1,069 |
| Hamlin | 2,511 | 82.25% | 431 | 14.12% | 111 | 3.64% | 2,080 | 68.13% | 3,053 |
| Hand | 1,347 | 81.00% | 264 | 15.87% | 52 | 3.13% | 1,083 | 65.12% | 1,663 |
| Hanson | 1,536 | 80.25% | 328 | 17.14% | 50 | 2.61% | 1,208 | 63.11% | 1,914 |
| Harding | 714 | 91.54% | 36 | 4.62% | 30 | 3.85% | 678 | 86.92% | 780 |
| Hughes | 5,803 | 72.10% | 1,837 | 22.83% | 408 | 5.07% | 3,966 | 49.28% | 8,048 |
| Hutchinson | 3,013 | 84.30% | 444 | 12.42% | 117 | 3.27% | 2,569 | 71.88% | 3,574 |
| Hyde | 541 | 81.60% | 99 | 14.93% | 23 | 3.47% | 442 | 66.67% | 663 |
| Jackson | 703 | 65.82% | 322 | 30.15% | 43 | 4.03% | 381 | 35.67% | 1,068 |
| Jerauld | 716 | 76.82% | 201 | 21.57% | 15 | 1.61% | 515 | 55.26% | 932 |
| Jones | 465 | 88.24% | 41 | 7.78% | 21 | 3.98% | 424 | 80.46% | 527 |
| Kingsbury | 2,031 | 76.84% | 510 | 19.30% | 102 | 3.86% | 1,521 | 57.55% | 2,643 |
| Lake | 4,151 | 74.30% | 1,205 | 21.57% | 231 | 4.13% | 2,946 | 52.73% | 5,587 |
| Lawrence | 9,460 | 65.74% | 3,927 | 27.29% | 1,003 | 6.97% | 5,533 | 38.45% | 14,390 |
| Lincoln | 23,931 | 69.91% | 8,796 | 25.70% | 1,505 | 4.40% | 15,135 | 44.21% | 34,232 |
| Lyman | 968 | 70.20% | 342 | 24.80% | 69 | 5.00% | 626 | 45.40% | 1,379 |
| Marshall | 1,259 | 64.83% | 612 | 31.51% | 71 | 3.66% | 647 | 33.32% | 1,942 |
| McCook | 2,258 | 78.62% | 506 | 17.62% | 108 | 3.76% | 1,752 | 61.00% | 2,872 |
| McPherson | 1,053 | 85.40% | 131 | 10.62% | 49 | 3.97% | 922 | 74.78% | 1,233 |
| Meade | 9,928 | 73.20% | 2,554 | 18.83% | 1,080 | 7.96% | 7,374 | 54.37% | 13,562 |
| Mellette | 402 | 58.26% | 244 | 35.36% | 44 | 6.38% | 158 | 22.90% | 690 |
| Miner | 844 | 78.95% | 192 | 17.96% | 33 | 3.09% | 652 | 60.99% | 1,069 |
| Minnehaha | 54,700 | 62.42% | 28,587 | 32.62% | 4,346 | 4.96% | 26,113 | 29.80% | 87,633 |
| Moody | 2,142 | 69.59% | 821 | 26.67% | 115 | 3.74% | 1,321 | 42.92% | 3,078 |
| Oglala Lakota | 357 | 12.34% | 2,379 | 82.26% | 156 | 5.39% | -2,022 | -69.92% | 2,892 |
| Pennington | 33,056 | 62.65% | 15,384 | 29.16% | 4,324 | 8.19% | 17,672 | 33.49% | 52,764 |
| Perkins | 1,234 | 82.87% | 184 | 12.36% | 71 | 4.77% | 1,050 | 70.52% | 1,489 |
| Potter | 1,038 | 84.53% | 153 | 12.46% | 37 | 3.01% | 885 | 72.07% | 1,228 |
| Roberts | 2,348 | 61.31% | 1,327 | 34.65% | 155 | 4.05% | 1,021 | 26.66% | 3,830 |
| Sanborn | 928 | 80.77% | 182 | 15.84% | 39 | 3.39% | 746 | 64.93% | 1,149 |
| Spink | 2,208 | 73.95% | 665 | 22.27% | 113 | 3.78% | 1,543 | 51.67% | 2,986 |
| Stanley | 1,258 | 76.71% | 298 | 18.17% | 84 | 5.12% | 960 | 58.54% | 1,640 |
| Sully | 699 | 82.43% | 110 | 12.97% | 39 | 4.60% | 589 | 69.46% | 848 |
| Todd | 475 | 23.22% | 1,458 | 71.26% | 113 | 5.52% | -983 | -48.04% | 2,046 |
| Tripp | 2,119 | 83.00% | 357 | 13.98% | 77 | 3.02% | 1,762 | 69.02% | 2,553 |
| Turner | 3,473 | 79.58% | 691 | 15.83% | 200 | 4.58% | 2,782 | 63.75% | 4,364 |
| Union | 6,021 | 72.38% | 1,918 | 23.06% | 380 | 4.57% | 4,103 | 49.32% | 8,319 |
| Walworth | 1,888 | 80.79% | 366 | 15.66% | 83 | 3.55% | 1,522 | 65.13% | 2,337 |
| Yankton | 6,593 | 66.67% | 2,828 | 28.60% | 468 | 4.73% | 3,765 | 38.07% | 9,889 |
| Ziebach | 363 | 49.12% | 328 | 44.38% | 48 | 6.50% | 35 | 4.74% | 739 |
| Totals | 272,099 | 67.80% | 108,029 | 26.92% | 21,176 | 5.28% | 164,070 | 40.88% | 401,304 |
Counties that flipped from Democratic to Republican
- Clay (largest city: Vermillion)
- Corson (largest city: McLaughlin)
- Ziebach (largest city: Dupree)
References
[edit]- ↑ Dircks, Jackson (November 6, 2024). "Republican Kristie Fiegen retains seat on Public Utilities Commission". South Dakota Public Broadcasting. Retrieved April 25, 2026.
- ↑ Heemstra, Jody (January 15, 2025). "Hanson elected chairman of South Dakota Public Utilities Commission; Fiegen takes oath for new term". DRGNews. Dakota Radio Group. Retrieved April 25, 2026.
- ↑ https://www.gowatertown.net/fiegen-announces-shes-running-for-re-election-to-south-dakota-puc/
- ↑ "Democrats nominate PUC candidate at state convention". South Dakota Searchlight. States Newsroom. June 16, 2024. Retrieved April 24, 2026.
- ↑ Huber, Makenzie (July 1, 2024). "Libertarians nominate Public Utilities Commission candidate". South Dakota Searchlight. States Newsroom. Retrieved April 24, 2026.
- 1 2 Johnson, Monae (November 12, 2024). "2024 General Election Canvass and Certificate" (PDF). Secretary of State of South Dakota. Archived (PDF) from the original on August 6, 2026. Retrieved July 28, 2026.
