Voting Leave Requirements in South Dakota

At a glance

Two consecutive hours, unless you already have them

South Dakota gives an employee entitled to vote the right to be absent for "a period of two consecutive hours between the time of opening and the time of closing the polls" on election day, including a primary. The two hours must be consecutive, not two separate blocks.

That right disappears if the employee already has "a period of two consecutive hours during the time the polls are open during which he is not required to be present at his work." An employee whose shift leaves a clear two-hour off-duty window while the polls are open is not entitled to leave.

The time is paid

The statute is explicit that the absence costs nothing: the voter "is not, because of so absenting himself, liable to any penalty, nor may any deduction be made on account of such absence from his usual salary or wages." So a qualifying two-hour voting absence is paid time.

The employer picks the hours

The employer keeps control of scheduling: it "may specify the hours during which such employee may absent himself." The employee is entitled to the two-hour window, but the employer can decide when in the day it falls.

What trips people up

The eligibility test is a mirror image of the entitlement. Because the trigger is whether you lack two consecutive off-duty hours while the polls are open, a standard daytime shift set well inside a longer poll-open window often means no right to paid leave at all. The right is aimed at employees whose hours cover most of the polling day.

Section 12-3-5 says nothing about advance notice or a posted workplace notice. Giving your employer a heads-up is sensible, but the statute imposes no notice or posting condition.

Common questions

How much time off do I get?

Up to two consecutive hours while the polls are open, and it is paid.

When would I not qualify?

If your off-duty time already includes two consecutive hours while the polls are open.

Can my employer choose when I go?

Yes. The employer may specify the hours during which you take the two-hour window.

What happens to an employer who refuses or docks pay?

That is a Class 2 misdemeanor.

Statutes and sources

• S.D. Codified Laws § 12-3-5: the two-consecutive-hour right, the off-duty-time exception, the no-penalty and no-wage-deduction rule, the employer's power to set the hours, and the Class 2 misdemeanor penalty — official text (accessed July 13, 2026).