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 |
South Dakota results by county
66 counties. Third-party and independent votes are reported by the county source as one combined figure; every named candidate is listed in the complete result below.
| Led by | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aurora County | Carter, Jimmy+438 | 83139.4% | 1,26960.2% | 90.4% | 2,109 |
| Beadle County | Carter, Jimmy+88 | 4,75849.2% | 4,84650.1% | 620.6% | 9,666 |
| Bennett County | Ford, Gerald+129 | 61054.9% | 48143.3% | 201.8% | 1,111 |
| Bon Homme County | Carter, Jimmy+257 | 1,89746.6% | 2,15452.9% | 220.5% | 4,073 |
| Brookings County | Ford, Gerald+593 | 5,27852.6% | 4,68546.7% | 630.6% | 10,026 |
| Brown County | Carter, Jimmy+1,279 | 7,60945.7% | 8,88853.4% | 1360.8% | 16,633 |
| Brule County | Carter, Jimmy+359 | 1,17543.2% | 1,53456.3% | 140.5% | 2,723 |
| Buffalo County | Carter, Jimmy+46 | 19444.7% | 24055.3% | 00.0% | 434 |
| Butte County | Ford, Gerald+689 | 2,05559.2% | 1,36639.3% | 511.5% | 3,472 |
| Campbell County | Ford, Gerald+408 | 89764.5% | 48935.2% | 50.4% | 1,391 |
| Charles Mix County | Carter, Jimmy+814 | 1,77940.5% | 2,59359.0% | 220.5% | 4,394 |
| Clark County | Ford, Gerald+73 | 1,44951.1% | 1,37648.5% | 130.5% | 2,838 |
| Clay County | Ford, Gerald+54 | 2,64749.9% | 2,59348.9% | 611.2% | 5,301 |
| Codington County | Carter, Jimmy+176 | 4,50448.9% | 4,68050.8% | 290.3% | 9,213 |
| Corson County | Carter, Jimmy+121 | 84646.4% | 96753.0% | 100.5% | 1,823 |
| Custer County | Ford, Gerald+378 | 1,37357.1% | 99541.4% | 371.5% | 2,405 |
| Davison County | Carter, Jimmy+822 | 3,68844.7% | 4,51054.7% | 500.6% | 8,248 |
| Day County | Carter, Jimmy+993 | 1,61738.0% | 2,61061.3% | 300.7% | 4,257 |
| Deuel County | Carter, Jimmy+288 | 1,17744.4% | 1,46555.2% | 100.4% | 2,652 |
| Dewey County | Ford, Gerald+114 | 82053.5% | 70646.0% | 80.5% | 1,534 |
| Douglas County | Ford, Gerald+340 | 1,31557.3% | 97542.5% | 50.2% | 2,295 |
| Edmunds County | Carter, Jimmy+335 | 1,29444.1% | 1,62955.6% | 90.3% | 2,932 |
| Fall River County | Ford, Gerald+509 | 2,04656.6% | 1,53742.5% | 320.9% | 3,615 |
| Faulk County | Carter, Jimmy+195 | 86844.8% | 1,06354.9% | 60.3% | 1,937 |
| Grant County | Carter, Jimmy+347 | 2,05145.9% | 2,39853.7% | 150.3% | 4,464 |
| Gregory County | Carter, Jimmy+183 | 1,47546.9% | 1,65852.7% | 120.4% | 3,145 |
| Haakon County | Ford, Gerald+335 | 81261.9% | 47736.4% | 231.8% | 1,312 |
| Hamlin County | Ford, Gerald+50 | 1,45250.7% | 1,40248.9% | 120.4% | 2,866 |
| Hand County | Ford, Gerald+33 | 1,51050.4% | 1,47749.3% | 70.2% | 2,994 |
| Hanson County | Carter, Jimmy+312 | 69340.6% | 1,00558.9% | 90.5% | 1,707 |
| Harding County | Ford, Gerald+11 | 47049.7% | 45948.6% | 161.7% | 945 |
| Hughes County | Ford, Gerald+1,491 | 3,99761.2% | 2,50638.3% | 330.5% | 6,536 |
| Hutchinson County | Ford, Gerald+760 | 2,82257.5% | 2,06242.0% | 220.4% | 4,906 |
| Hyde County | Ford, Gerald+115 | 68754.4% | 57245.3% | 40.3% | 1,263 |
| Jackson County | Ford, Gerald+172 | 76154.7% | 58942.3% | 412.9% | 1,391 |
| Jerauld County | Carter, Jimmy+24 | 82149.2% | 84550.6% | 30.2% | 1,669 |
| Jones County | Ford, Gerald+141 | 51557.9% | 37442.0% | 10.1% | 890 |
| Kingsbury County | Ford, Gerald+82 | 1,84451.0% | 1,76248.7% | 110.3% | 3,617 |
| Lake County | Carter, Jimmy+400 | 2,53046.2% | 2,93053.5% | 160.3% | 5,476 |
| Lawrence County | Ford, Gerald+1,104 | 4,20656.5% | 3,10241.6% | 1411.9% | 7,449 |
| Lincoln County | Ford, Gerald+148 | 3,10551.0% | 2,95748.6% | 220.4% | 6,084 |
| Lyman County | Ford, Gerald+61 | 89251.3% | 83147.8% | 160.9% | 1,739 |
| Marshall County | Carter, Jimmy+488 | 1,23341.6% | 1,72158.0% | 130.4% | 2,967 |
| McCook County | Carter, Jimmy+78 | 1,74448.7% | 1,82250.9% | 120.3% | 3,578 |
| McPherson County | Ford, Gerald+969 | 1,66270.2% | 69329.3% | 120.5% | 2,367 |
| Meade County | Ford, Gerald+618 | 3,09654.4% | 2,47843.6% | 1162.0% | 5,690 |
| Mellette County | Ford, Gerald+79 | 50853.5% | 42945.2% | 121.3% | 949 |
| Miner County | Carter, Jimmy+450 | 83939.2% | 1,28960.2% | 120.6% | 2,140 |
| Minnehaha County | Ford, Gerald+1,218 | 23,28651.1% | 22,06848.4% | 2020.4% | 45,556 |
| Moody County | Carter, Jimmy+467 | 1,47543.0% | 1,94256.7% | 110.3% | 3,428 |
| Oglala Lakota County | Carter, Jimmy+455 | 30127.8% | 75669.9% | 242.2% | 1,081 |
| Pennington County | Ford, Gerald+3,294 | 13,35256.3% | 10,05842.4% | 2891.2% | 23,699 |
| Perkins County | Ford, Gerald+36 | 1,29850.1% | 1,26248.7% | 321.2% | 2,592 |
| Potter County | Ford, Gerald+228 | 1,13655.4% | 90844.2% | 80.4% | 2,052 |
| Roberts County | Carter, Jimmy+975 | 1,91539.7% | 2,89060.0% | 150.3% | 4,820 |
| Sanborn County | Carter, Jimmy+144 | 88146.1% | 1,02553.6% | 60.3% | 1,912 |
| Spink County | Carter, Jimmy+647 | 2,00342.8% | 2,65056.6% | 260.6% | 4,679 |
| Stanley County | Ford, Gerald+89 | 63753.6% | 54846.1% | 40.3% | 1,189 |
| Sully County | Ford, Gerald+125 | 63055.3% | 50544.3% | 40.4% | 1,139 |
| Todd County | Carter, Jimmy+243 | 58340.7% | 82657.6% | 251.7% | 1,434 |
| Tripp County | Ford, Gerald+158 | 1,98051.9% | 1,82247.7% | 150.4% | 3,817 |
| Turner County | Ford, Gerald+788 | 2,69458.3% | 1,90641.3% | 180.4% | 4,618 |
| Union County | Carter, Jimmy+243 | 2,29747.3% | 2,54052.3% | 230.5% | 4,860 |
| Walworth County | Ford, Gerald+671 | 2,18758.7% | 1,51640.7% | 250.7% | 3,728 |
| Yankton County | Ford, Gerald+42 | 4,02949.8% | 3,98749.3% | 710.9% | 8,087 |
| Ziebach County | Carter, Jimmy+1 | 36948.5% | 37048.6% | 222.9% | 761 |
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% |
Same ballot, 1976SD
Source. MIT Election Data + Science Lab — 1976 presidential returns · official county-level results. Real returns — nothing estimated.