2002 South Dakota gubernatorial election

The 2002 South Dakota gubernatorial election took place on November 2, 2002 to elect a Governor of South Dakota. Republican nominee Mike Rounds was elected, defeating Democratic nominee Jim Abbott.

2002 South Dakota gubernatorial election

← 1998 November 2, 2002 2006 →

Nominee Mike Rounds Jim Abbott Party Republican Democratic Running mate Dennis Daugaard Michael Wilson Popular vote 189,920 140,263 Percentage 56.8% 41.9%

County results Rounds:      50-60%      60-70%      70-80%      80-90% Abbott:      50–60%      60–70%      70–80%      80–90%

Governor before election Bill Janklow Republican Elected Governor Mike Rounds Republican

Democratic primary

Candidates

• Jim Abbott, President of the University of South Dakota, former South Dakota State Representative
• Ron J. Volesky, South Dakota State Senator
• Jim Hutmacher, South Dakota State Senator
• Robert Hockett

Results

Democratic primary results^[1]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic	Jim Abbott	46,794	68.78
	Democratic	Ron J. Volesky	11,481	16.87
	Democratic	Jim Hutmacher	8,847	13.00
	Democratic	Robert Hockett	915	1.34
Total votes			68,037	100.00

Republican primary

Candidates

• Mike Rounds, former South Dakota State Senator
• Mark Barnett, Attorney General of South Dakota
• Steve T. Kirby, former Lieutenant Governor of South Dakota

Campaign

Rounds' victory was one of South Dakota's greatest political upsets.^{[citation needed]} Until late in 2001, then-Congressman John Thune was the front-runner for the nomination. When Thune passed on the race in order to challenge Senator Tim Johnson, state Attorney General Mark Barnett and former Lieutenant Governor Steve T. Kirby quickly became candidates. Rounds declared his candidacy late, in December 2001 and was out-raised and outspent ten-to-one by each of his opponents.^{[citation needed]}

However, the contest between Kirby and Barnett soon became very negative and "dirty". Barnett attacked Kirby for not investing in companies based in South Dakota and for his involvement with Collagenesis, a company which removed skin from donated human cadavers and processed them for use. It became the subject of a massive scandal when it was revealed that the company was using the skins for much more lucrative cosmetic surgery like lip and penis enhancements while burn victims "lie waiting in hospitals as nurses scour the country for skin to cover their wounds, even though skin is in plentiful supply for plastic surgeons".^[2] Kirby invested in the company after the scandal broke and Barnett attacked him for it in television advertisements.^[3] However, the advertisements backfired because "the claims were so outlandish, that people thought for sure that they were exaggerated or completely fabricated."^[4]

As the two front-runners concentrated on attacking each other, Rounds insisted on running a positive campaign and was not attacked by his opponents. Rounds' positive image and extensive knowledge of state government won him many supporters who were alienated by the front-runners. On the day of the primary election, Rounds won a stunning victory, with 44.3% of the vote to Barnett's 29.5% and Kirby's 26.1%.^{[citation needed]}

Results

Republican primary results^[5]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Mike Rounds	49,331	44.34
	Republican	Mark Barnett	32,868	29.54
	Republican	Steve T. Kirby	29,065	26.12
Total votes			111,264	100.00

General election

Predictions

Source	Ranking	As of
The Cook Political Report^[6]	Lean R	October 31, 2002
Sabato's Crystal Ball^[7]	Likely R	November 4, 2002

Results

South Dakota gubernatorial election, 2002^[8]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Republican	Mike Rounds	189,920	56.77%	-7.27%
	Democratic	Jim Abbott	140,263	41.92%	+9.07%
	Independent	James P. Carlson	2,393	0.72%
	Libertarian	Nathan A. Barton	1,983	0.59%	-1.10%
Majority			49,657	14.84%	-16.35%
Turnout			334,559
	Republican hold		Swing

Counties that flipped from Republican to Democratic

• Day (largest city: Webster)
• Roberts (largest city: Sisseton)
• Ziebach (largest city: Dupree)
• Corson (Largest city: McLaughlin)
• Bennett (largest city: Martin)
• Bon Homme (Largest city: Springfield)

References

1. . Archived from the original on April 16, 2011. Retrieved May 7, 2011.
2. Moulitsas, Markos (February 26, 2008). "GOP's flesh-eating zombie candidate". The Hill. Retrieved April 1, 2013.
3. "Collagenesis". YouTube. November 5, 2006. Archived from the original on December 15, 2021. Retrieved April 1, 2013.
4. "SD-Sen: 2002 ad against Flesh Eating Zombie". Daily Kos. February 28, 2008. Retrieved April 1, 2013.
5. . Archived from the original on April 16, 2011. Retrieved May 7, 2011.
6. . The Cook Political Report. October 31, 2002. Archived from the original on December 8, 2002. Retrieved September 18, 2018.
7. . www.centerforpolitics.org. November 4, 2002. Archived from the original on December 12, 2002. Retrieved September 18, 2018.
8. . Archived from the original on May 15, 2011. Retrieved May 7, 2011.