SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (KELO) — Minnehaha County auditor Leah Anderson says voters can wear Kamala Harris or Donald Trump hats and T-shirts when they head to the polls, a change from previous policy. But the South Dakota secretary of state’s office and the Minnehaha County state’s attorney are less clear on this point.
It’s posted on entrances to the Minnehaha County Administration building in Sioux Falls: South Dakota codified law 12-18-3 says no one at a polling place can “display campaign posters, signs, or other campaign materials.”
Anderson told KELOLAND News on Tuesday about the change in policy: previously, someone with a candidate hat or shirt would be asked to flip the shirt inside out or remove that hat.
“Our states attorney’s office has done some research on that and followed some other case laws and has determined that could likely violate a person’s first amendment rights, so we are teaching our workers that it’s OK if a person comes into vote and has something on that’s not deemed as campaigning,” Anderson said Tuesday.
KELOLAND News sat down Friday with Minnehaha County State’s Attorney Daniel Haggar, who declined to discuss communication with Anderson on this topic.
“I think it’s important to look at our law. it’s content neutral, right, so it’s not saying you can’t wear a Trump hat, you can’t wear a marijuana shirt, you can’t wear a pipeline shirt,” Haggar said. “It says you can’t complain, you can’t harass, you can’t intimidate, you can’t solicit votes, right. We’re committed to that, right. We’re going to make sure that people can come in, exercise their right to vote and do that without being harassed.”
Dan Santella: So then someone can wear a Harris or Trump hat to vote in Minnehaha County?
“I’m not saying that,” Haggar said in response. “What I’m saying is they can’t campaign, can’t harass, can’t intimidate, can’t solicit votes.”
Brookings County Auditor Lori Schultz sent KELOLAND News a statement she says is from the secretary of state’s office: “We are aware of the KELO article regarding Leah Anderson announcing she will be allowing campaign material in polling locations. This office has advised for many, many years that there may be no campaign material within 100 ft of any entrance to a polling location and also no voter may wear campaign material into the polling location. The Secretary of State’s office will continue to follow state law and continue to advise you all to follow state law unless we have a court opinion specific to SD that our law is unconstitutional.”
The question is: are hats or shirts considered campaign materials? For Sue Nipe, of Sioux Falls, who has worked as a poll worker in several elections, there are concerns.
“I believe wholeheartedly that a voting site should be nonpartisan,” Nipe said. “There shouldn’t be any partisan activities anywhere close to it. that’s why we have the rule that candidates can’t put their yard signs any closer than 100 feet to the election door,”
