Unusual Election Day Tests Both Parties as Georgia Special Election and South Dakota Gubernatorial Runoff Unfold Tuesday

Voters across the country will weigh in on two starkly different contests Tuesday, creating one of the year’s most geographically divided electoral moments. In Georgia, Democrats seek to retain a heavily Democratic congressional seat left vacant by Rep. David Scott’s death in April at age 80. Meanwhile, South Dakota Republicans face an unprecedented gubernatorial runoff that pits the state’s establishment against an outsider challenger in one of the nation’s safest red states.

Scott’s passing created a special election in a district spanning southern and eastern Atlanta suburbs including Stockbridge, Conyers, and Snellville. The 12-term lawmaker, who was related by marriage to Braves legend Hank Aaron, had drawn criticism from within his own party before his death. Recent years saw Scott clash with progressive Democrats frustrated by his combative demeanor, including an incident last year when he shouted expletives at a Politico photographer while being wheeled through the Capitol.

Three candidates are competing to complete Scott’s term through January: his daughter, who aims to continue his legacy; Everton Blair, a millennial candidate who criticized Scott’s legislative approach; and former Mississippi judge Carlos Moore. Blair’s primary challenge to Scott centered on the congressman’s insufficient answers at a Gwinnett County town hall and his subsequent confrontational behavior. Moore, suspended from the bench for one year in 2024 following a bar tribunal finding of mishandled settlement procedures, has pledged to defend democracy against the Trump administration.

Georgia Democrats are widely expected to hold the seat in November, with state Rep. Jasmine Clark winning the Democratic nomination for the full term and facing Republican Air Force veteran Jonathan Chavez. President Donald Trump lost the district by approximately 43 points in 2024.

In South Dakota, Gov. Larry Rhoden confronts self-made millionaire bitcoin investor Toby Doeden in the state’s first gubernatorial runoff. Rhoden assumed office after Trump tapped former Gov. Kristi Noem for Homeland Security secretary in his second term. Rhoden failed to secure the nomination outright during June’s primary election, necessitating the runoff contest.

The South Dakota race shapes up as a classic establishment-versus-outsider matchup, with Rhoden heavily favored despite Doeden’s strong first-place primary finish. Political observers will closely monitor Minnehaha County, home to Sioux Falls, and Pennington County on the state’s western side—both counties that contributed significantly to Doeden’s June performance. Republicans maintain commanding structural advantages in South Dakota, where no Democratic governor has won election since the 1970s, when Richard Kneip served nearly two terms before President Jimmy Carter nominated him as ambassador to Singapore.