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2010 Ballot Questions
Courtesy, South Dakota Secretary of State

Ballot question measures on the 2010 General Election ballot

Constitutional Amendment K - An amendment to Article VI of the Constitution of the State of South Dakota, relating to the right of individuals to vote by secret ballot.

Click here to view the amendment.

Attorney General’s Explanation:
The proposed amendment to the Constitution would guarantee a right to vote by secret ballot to prevent others from knowing how a person voted. This right would apply to elections of public officers, adoption of initiated or referred measures, and elections to designate or authorize employee representation, such as elections concerning unions.

A vote “Yes” is for guaranteeing a right to vote by secret ballot.
A vote “No” is against the constitutional amendment.


Constitutional Amendment L - Amendments to Article XIII of the Constitution, relating to the trust fund created from the proceeds of the state cement enterprise sales.

Click here to view the amendment.

Attorney General’s Explanation:
Constitutional Amendment L changes annual distribution amounts made from the cement plant trust fund to the State’s general fund. The cement plant trust fund holds the proceeds from the sale of the state cement plant to benefit South Dakota citizens. The proposed amendment reduces the current $12 million mandatory annual transfer to $8 million over a four-year period. Thereafter, the mandatory transfer is eliminated and the Legislature may transfer up to four percent of the trust fund to the State’s general fund as long as the transfers do not cause the trust fund to fall below its original principal amount.

The amendment also eliminates a distribution from the trust fund to support education.

A vote “Yes” is for changing the annual distributions from the cement plant trust fund.
A vote “No” is against the constitutional amendment.


Referred Law 12 - An Act to prohibit smoking tobacco or carrying lighted tobacco products in certain places and to require certain persons to inform violators of the prohibition.

Click here to view petition form and petition sponsor contact information.

Attorney General’s Explanation:
The referred law broadens the State’s ban on smoking to apply to all restaurants, bars, package liquor stores, Deadwood casinos and video lottery establishments. It requires owners, managers, and operators of places where smoking is prohibited to inform violators of the smoking ban. The ban does not apply to tobacco shops, hotel rooms designated as smoking rooms, and existing cigar bars.

A vote “Yes” is for broadening the State’s ban on smoking.
A vote “No” is against the referred law.


Initiated Measure 13 - An Act to provide safe access to medical marijuana for certain qualified persons.

Click here to view petition form and the petition sponsor contact information.

Attorney General’s Explanation:
The proposed initiated measure would change state law to legalize marijuana possession, use, distribution and cultivation by persons registered with the South Dakota Department of Heath. These activities remain illegal under federal law.

Registration to use, possess and cultivate marijuana would require a certification from a physician that the registrant has a debilitating medical condition and that the potential benefits of the marijuana use would likely outweigh the health risks. Minors may be registered with parental consent. The registrant may designate another person to cultivate, possess, and distribute marijuana for the registrant’s use. The designee must register with the Department and may provide only a limited amount of marijuana for a maximum of five registrants. Schools, employers and landlords may not refuse to enroll, employ, or lease based upon marijuana registration unless required by federal law. The proposed law does not require that a registrant be allowed to use marijuana in a workplace or on property owned by another.

A vote “Yes” is for legalizing marijuana for registrants and designees.
A vote “No” is against the proposed law.

2010 Election Calendar
Courtesy, South Dakota Secretary of State

Click here for a complete 2010 South Dakota election calendar from the South Dakota Secretary of State (PDF 86 KB).

Where Do I Vote?

Click here to visit the South Dakota Secretary of State's website to access a useful tool that will help you find out where to go vote.