South Dakota, U.S. Senate
2008: Sen.
Vote for winner in 2002: 50 percent
Johnson is almost assured a second term this election cycle despite a record-thin win in 2002. The Democratic senator has recovered from a near-fatal brain hemorrhage last December and is back to working in the Senate, and surrogates kept up fundraising for Johnson ’ s re-election campaign while he was recovering, and he is running against an underfunded Republican.
Race Information
- Incumbent: Sen. Tim Johnson, D
- First Elected: 1996 (2nd term)
- Last Elected: 2002 (49.62%)
- Incumbent Status: Running for re-election
- Challengers: Joel Dykstra, R
- Race Forecast: Safe Democrat
State Information
- U.S. Senate Delegation: 1 Democrat, 1 Republican
- U.S. House Delegation: 1 Democrat
- South Dakota's Other Senator
- Sen. John Thune-R
- First Elected: 2004 (1st term)
- Last Elected: 2004 (50.58%)
- State Offices
- Governor: Gov. Michael Rounds, R
- First Elected: 2002 (1st term)
- State House Control: Republican
- State Senate Control: Republican
- Demographics (2000 census)
- Population (2005):775,933
- Under 18:26.8%
- Over 65:14.3%
- Non-Hispanic White:88.0%
- Black:0.6%
- Hispanic:1.4%
- Asian:0.6%
- American Indian:8.1%
- Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander:0.0%
- Median Household Income: 35,282
- Median Household Income Rank: 40
| Year | Election | Candidate | Votes | Percent |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2008 | general | Tim Johnson (D) | 237,814 | 62.5% |
| Joel Dykstra (R) | 142,757 | 37.5% | ||
| 2002 | general | Tim Johnson (D) | 167,481 | 49.6% |
| John Thune (R) | 166,957 | 49.5% | ||
| Kurt Evans (LIBERT) | 3,070 | 0.9% | ||
| 1996 | general | Tim Johnson (D) | 166,533 | 51.3% |
| Larry Pressler (R) | 157,954 | 48.7% | ||
| Year | Democrat | Republican | Independent |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2004 | John Kerry: 38% | George W. Bush: 60% | |
| 2000 | Al Gore: 38% | George W. Bush: 60% | |
| 1996 | Bill Clinton: 43% | Robert Dole: 46% | |
| 1992 | Bill Clinton: 37% | George H. W. Bush: 41% |
Campaign Finance Details for the 2008 Race
| Filers | Through | Total Receipts | Total Disbursements | Total From PACs | Total From Individuals | Ending Cash | Debts Owed |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| JOHNSON, TIM (D) | November 24, 2008 | $4,433,225.00 | $4,363,783.00 | $278,500.00 | $2,129,014.00 | $698,507.00 | $0 |
| DASCHLE, THOMAS ANDREW (D) | November 24, 2008 | $135,787.00 | $193,641.00 | $0 | $0 | $38,483.00 | $0 |
| THUNE, JOHN (R) | September 30, 2008 | $2,772,490.00 | $1,177,933.00 | $2,000.00 | $2,184,885.00 | $3,730,617.00 | $0 |
| DYKSTRA, JOEL DEAN (R) | November 24, 2008 | $888,187.00 | $885,821.00 | $45,000.00 | $816,369.00 | $2,365.00 | $36,024.00 |
| KEPHART, SAMUEL ROBINSON (R) | September 30, 2008 | $47,829.00 | $47,826.00 | $0 | $39,494.00 | $1.00 | $0 |
| GONYO, CHARLES LYONEL (R) | September 30, 2008 | $36,979.00 | $35,000.00 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $36,979.00 |
