Eighth Circuit skeptical of South Dakotans’ challenge to ballot petition deadline

A federal appeals court panel in the Eighth Circuit expressed skepticism toward a challenge to South Dakota’s revised ballot petition deadline, which shifted the submission period for citizen-led measures from May to February. The advocacy group Dakotans for Health argued the change unconstitutionally restricts political speech, but the court questioned whether the earlier deadline imposes an undue burden, with state attorneys defending it as a reasonable measure to allow more time for legal challenges before elections.