state senate districtSouth Dakota 28th State Senate District
presidential margin
2004–2024 · Democratic minus Republican
2004R+20.7
2008R+12.2
2012R+26.1
2016R+42.1
2020R+37.2
2024R+42.7
full record · 1892 → 2024
presidential returns
2024 turnout 60.6% of 18,627 citizens 18+
Year
Democrat
Republican
Others
Total
CVAP
Turnout
2024
3,111
7,931
245
11,287
18,627
60.6%
2020
3,461
7,720
257
11,438
19,168†
59.7%
2016
2,698
7,063
615
10,376
19,240†
53.9%
2012
3,697
6,407
288
10,392
18,698†
55.6%
2008
4,659
6,003
329
10,991
18,401†
59.7%
2004
4,740
7,286
276
12,302
18,104†
68.0%
† Citizen voting-age population estimated for prior cycles from the constituent-county ACS trend anchored to the current figure. Source: ACS 5-year, table B05003.
——
D+60R+60
18922024
Boundary by 2024 margin · Precinct returns · VEST · MIT Election Lab
People and households
Who lives here
Exact values for this place, its state, and the United States.
Race · ethnicity · ancestry
Communities and origins
GroupSD SD 28South DakotaUnited States
German20.9%33.1%12.5%
Irish8.6%9.9%9.4%
Norwegian8.3%10.4%—
English7.1%7.7%9.5%
American5.2%4.4%5.3%
Swedish1.6%2.5%—
Polish1.6%—2.2%
Italian1.4%—4.8%
Oglala Sioux0.6%2.0%—
Rosebud Sioux0.5%1.1%—
Mexican1.2%2.6%11.3%
Puerto Rican0.4%0.4%1.8%
Spanish0.4%——
Spaniard0.2%——
Hispanic or Latino counts residents of any race; the race groups count only their non-Hispanic residents, so the groups are mutually exclusive and sum to 100%. Expand a row to see ancestries reported within that group.
Age and life stage
Measure
SD SD 28
South Dakota
United States
Median age
36.4
38.2
39.1
Age 18–24
8.2%
9.2%
9.2%
Age 65 and older
17.1%
18.0%
17.2%
Household economy
Measure
SD SD 28
South Dakota
United States
Median household income
$64,910
$75,081
$84,427
Poverty rate
21.4%
12.0%
12.5%
Bachelor's degree or higher (25+)
20.2%
31.9%
35.6%
Languages at home
Measure
SD SD 28
South Dakota
United States
Speaks a non-English language at home
6.1%
7.1%
22.3%
Other languages
4.3%
1.9%
0.8%
Religious landscape
Measure
SD SD 28
South Dakota
United States
Catholic
—
14.8%
18.6%
Evangelical Protestant
—
20.1%
16.5%
Unclaimed / not counted
—
44.9%
51.5%
American Community Survey 2024 5-year (CVAP, income, age, poverty, education, language, race, ancestry) · presidential returns from MIT Election Lab through 2024 · 2020 U.S. Religion Census (ASARB) — congregational adherents; unclaimed is the residual not counted by congregations.
South Dakota 28th State Senate District
presidential history
Presidential margin, 1892–2024
Democratic minus Republican, by election
Presidential margin over time
Year
Margin (D minus R)
1892
−32.8%
1896
+12.5%
1900
−7.8%
1904
−39.3%
1908
−26.5%
1912
+40.0%
1916
+8.5%
1920
−38.5%
1924
−46.2%
1928
−27.4%
1932
+22.6%
1936
+10.6%
1940
−13.5%
1944
−18.8%
1948
−9.9%
1952
−42.8%
1956
−21.3%
1960
−18.2%
1964
+3.9%
1968
−23.0%
1972
−28.7%
1976
−6.5%
1980
−44.3%
1984
−35.4%
1988
−14.6%
1992
−13.1%
1996
−11.1%
2000
−35.9%
2004
−20.7%
2008
−12.2%
2012
−26.1%
2016
−42.1%
2020
−37.2%
2024
−42.7%
DemocraticRepublican
38 presidential elections
Third column names the leading third-party or independent finisher. Source · MIT Election Lab · ICPSR · VEST (precinct-level 2024). Swing · margin change from the prior cycle. vs U.S. · margin relative to the national result that year. † 2004, 2012 sub-county results are estimated: the source's block-level detail for these cycles was unreliable — either county/municipality-level consolidated reporting (COVID-era) or a precinct-to-block allocation that misplaced votes — so the figures are allocated from the constituent county totals in proportion to the place and scaled to certified totals.
Year
Won
Democratic
Republican
Other
Margin
Swing
vs U.S.
Total
R
27.6%Harris3,111
70.3%Trump7,931
2.2%
R+42.7
R+5.5
R+41.2
11,287
R
30.3%Biden3,461
67.5%Trump7,720
2.2%
R+37.2
D+4.8
R+41.7
11,438
R
26.0%Clinton2,698
68.1%Trump7,063
5.9%
R+42.1
R+16.0
R+44.2
10,376
R
35.6%Obama3,697
61.7%Romney6,407
2.8%
R+26.1
R+13.8
R+29.9
10,392
R
42.4%Obama4,659
54.6%McCain6,003
3.0%
R+12.2
D+8.5
R+19.5
10,991
R
38.5%Kerry4,740
59.2%Bush7,286
2.2%
R+20.7
D+15.2
R+18.2
12,302
R
30.4%Gore2,944
66.3%Bush6,420
3.2%
R+35.9
R+24.8
R+36.4
9,678
R
37.5%Clinton3,879
48.6%Dole5,031
13.8%
R+11.1
D+1.9
R+19.7
10,342
R
30.7%Clinton3,168
43.8%Bush4,514
25.4%
R+13.1
D+1.5
R+18.6
10,304
R
42.2%Dukakis4,522
56.8%Bush6,086
1.0%
R+14.6
D+20.8
R+6.9
10,710
R
32.0%Mondale3,607
67.5%Reagan7,598
0.5%
R+35.4
D+8.9
R+17.2
11,261
R
25.2%Carter3,011
69.5%Reagan8,308
5.3%
R+44.3
R+37.8
R+34.6
11,952
R
46.1%Carter5,129
52.6%Ford5,857
1.3%
R+6.5
D+22.2
R+8.6
11,126
R
35.4%McGovern4,004
64.1%Nixon7,248
0.5%
R+28.7
R+5.7
R+5.5
11,305
R
35.7%Humphrey4,044
58.7%Nixon6,649
5.6%
R+23.0
R+26.9
R+22.3
11,326
D
52.0%Johnson6,745
48.0%Goldwater6,236
0.0%
D+3.9
D+22.1
R+18.7
12,982
R
40.9%Kennedy5,512
59.1%Nixon7,964
0.0%
R+18.2
D+3.1
R+18.4
13,477
R
39.4%Stevenson5,090
60.6%Eisenhower7,841
0.0%
R+21.3
D+21.5
R+5.9
12,932
R
28.6%Stevenson3,806
71.4%Eisenhower9,500
0.0%
R+42.8
R+32.9
R+32.0
13,306
R
44.2%Truman5,029
54.1%Dewey6,160
1.7%
R+9.9
D+8.8
R+14.4
11,386
R
40.6%Roosevelt4,071
59.4%Dewey5,952
0.0%
R+18.8
R+5.3
R+26.3
10,023
R
43.2%Roosevelt6,470
56.8%Willkie8,491
0.0%
R+13.5
R+24.1
R+23.5
14,961
D
53.9%Roosevelt8,011
43.3%Landon6,437
2.7%
D+10.6
R+12.0
R+13.7
14,851
D
59.6%Roosevelt9,243
37.0%Hoover5,742
3.4%
D+22.6
D+49.9
D+4.8
15,518
R
35.9%Smith5,209
63.3%Hoover9,180
0.8%
R+27.4
D+18.8
R+9.9
14,507
R
10.6%Davis1,176
56.8%Coolidge6,300
32.7%
R+46.2
R+7.7
R+21.0
11,101
R
20.9%Cox2,298
59.3%Harding6,530
19.8%
R+38.5
R+47.0
R+12.3
11,005
D
50.9%Wilson3,697
42.4%Hughes3,077
6.7%
D+8.5
R+31.5
D+5.4
7,264
O
40.0%Wilson2,973
0.0%Taft0
60.0%
Roosevelt +20.0
D+66.5
D+20.5
7,433
R
33.7%Bryan915
60.2%Taft1,636
6.1%
R+26.5
D+12.8
R+17.0
2,717
R
28.0%Parker330
67.3%Roosevelt793
4.7%
R+39.3
R+31.5
R+19.6
1,178
R
45.4%Bryan420
53.2%McKinley492
1.4%
R+7.8
R+20.3
R+0.2
925
D
56.1%Bryan286
43.5%McKinley222
0.4%
D+12.5
D+45.4
D+18.6
510
O
7.3%Cleveland28
40.1%Harrison154
52.6%
Weaver +12.5
—
R+34.5
384
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current representation
Current officeholders
RSam MartyState Senate · 28
State legislative officeholder from OpenStates nightly current-legislator data.
With a 2024 presidential margin of R+42.7 across a sparse rural population of roughly 26,000, this district's electoral outcomes have been among the most predictable in the state legislature.
Across the recorded series it reached a Democratic high of 40.0 points in 1912 and a Republican high of 46.2 points in 1924. Between 2020 and 2024 the district moved 5.5 points toward the Republican candidate; the 2024 margin was 42.7 points.
A population of 25,943, a 59% non-Hispanic-white share, and a median household income of $64,910 describe the district. The district's voting pattern over the last decade is most similar to that of State Senate District 2 and State Senate District 1.
Akashic
Political twins — state-senate districts
The state-senate districts whose fingerprint — 2000–2024 trajectory, demographics, ancestry, religion — sits closest to this one, and why.
Twin score (0–100) = weighted cosine between tier-standardized fingerprints: presidential margins 2000–2024 with 12-yr trend and elasticity, ACS income, age, education, population and race, top reported ancestries, and religious adherence — chips name the closest-shared dimensions and the widest gap. Re-weight the groups in the twins explorer.
Compare two places, side by side
Twelve curated comparisons line up election history, demographics, and the divergence story for two places at a glance. Browse all comparisons →
Cite this page
All citations released under CC BY 4.0. Attribution: Akashic Intelligence.
South Dakota 28th State Senate District. Akashic. https://akashic.app/sld-upper/46028/. Accessed May 20, 2026. License: CC BY 4.0.
How did South Dakota 28th State Senate District vote in 2024?
In 2024, South Dakota 28th State Senate District voted Republican by 42.7 points (R+42.7), carried by the Republican candidate. Out of 11,287 votes cast, 3,111 went Democratic and 7,931 went Republican.
When did South Dakota 28th State Senate District last vote Democratic?
The most recent presidential election in which South Dakota 28th State Senate District voted Democratic was 1964.
How many people live in South Dakota 28th State Senate District?
South Dakota 28th State Senate District has a population of 25,943 according to the 2024 American Community Survey 5-year estimates from the US Census Bureau.
What is the median household income in South Dakota 28th State Senate District?
Median household income in South Dakota 28th State Senate District is $64,910 — below the national median of $80,734. The South Dakota state median is $75,081.
What is the political history of South Dakota 28th State Senate District?
Akashic tracks 38 presidential elections in South Dakota 28th State Senate District from 1876 to 2024. Of those, 5 went Democratic and 27 went Republican.
