The Process Begins at the County Level
The journey from ballot box to certified result starts locally. Immediately after the polls close, election judges at each precinct begin the initial public count of votes. However, this is just the first step. The official review, known as the canvass, is handled at the county level. Within six calendar days of an election, the county's canvassing board meets. This board, typically composed of the county's governing board and overseen by the county auditor, is tasked with a crucial job: verifying the returns from every precinct. They aggregate the vote totals, ensure the numbers from the pollbooks are accurate, and prepare a formal abstract, or summary, of the results for all federal, state, and local races. This local canvass is the foundational
layer of the entire certification process, ensuring that the raw data sent to the state is accurate and accounted for.
The State Board of Canvassers Takes Over
Once the county abstracts are prepared, they are immediately sent to the South Dakota Secretary of State. This is where the final, official certification for congressional and other statewide offices takes place. The responsibility falls to the state's Board of Canvassers. This is a separate body from the State Board of Elections, which handles broader election rules and administration. For the specific task of certifying the vote, state law designates the Board of State Canvassers to do the job. Their role is to receive the certified abstracts from all 66 counties, aggregate them, and produce the final, official statewide vote count for races like U.S. House and Senate. This state-level review ensures that results from across the entire state are brought together in a single, authoritative tally.
A Clear and Methodical Timeline
The timing of this process is not left to chance; it is strictly defined by state law to ensure efficiency and transparency. The clock starts ticking as soon as the election ends. As mentioned, counties have six calendar days to complete their local canvass. Following that, the Board of State Canvassers is required to convene within seven days of the election. The board has the authority to adjourn for up to ten days if necessary, primarily to ensure they receive the official returns from every county. Once all county abstracts are in, the state board reconvenes, completes its official statewide canvass, and certifies the final results. This means the entire process, from local counting to final state certification, is typically completed within about two weeks of Election Day. For special elections to fill a congressional vacancy, the timeline is even more compressed, with the state canvass required within three days of the counties finishing their work.
Why This Deliberate Process Matters
In an era of instant information, the deliberate pace of election certification can seem slow. However, this process is a feature, not a bug, of a secure and reliable election system. The canvassing period allows election officials to perform essential due diligence. They verify that the number of ballots counted matches the number of voters who signed in, process valid absentee and provisional ballots, and correct any clerical errors that may have occurred on election night. By having a bipartisan or multi-member board at both the county and state levels conduct these reviews publicly, the system builds in checks and balances. This methodical, transparent, and legally defined process ensures that the unofficial results reported on election night are thoroughly vetted, leading to a final, certified count that the public can trust as the true and accurate outcome of the election.
