Julian Beaudion, the Democratic nominee for the Senate in South Dakota, will withdraw from the race after months of insisting he would stay in, clearing the path for a one-on-one contest between independent Brian Bengs and incumbent Republican Mike Rounds.
Beaudion filed paperwork to remove his name from the general election ballot shortly before 6 p.m. Tuesday, he told The Washington Post. The election will become the third Senate race where Democrats have opted not to field a candidate, following similar withdrawals in Nebraska and Idaho, in hopes that candidates without the Democratic label will be better able to compete in overwhelmingly Republican states.
The strategy gained popularity after independent Dan Osborn came within seven percentage points of winning Nebraska’s 2024 Senate race, significantly outperforming past Democratic candidates. Osborn is running again this fall.
Several Democrats have also backed independent Seth Bodnar in Montana’s Senate race, believing he could be highly competitive if Democratic nominee Alani Bankhead withdraws. Bankhead has thus far refused to do so amid pressure from some Montana Democrats.
Montana’s Republican secretary of state recently suggested she could require Democrats to name a replacement for Bankhead if she withdraws, though some Democrats disagree.
Beaudion’s withdrawal in South Dakota could increase pressure on Bankhead to do the same ahead of Montana’s Monday deadline.
Bengs will still face an uphill battle against Rounds. He ran in 2022 as the Democratic nominee against the current Senate majority leader, John Thune, receiving only 26 percent of the vote.
Sabato’s Crystal Ball, a nonpartisan election forecaster, will probably keep South Dakota in its safely Republican column, according to Kyle Kondik, its managing editor. While Kondik said there may be a path to victory for Bengs, it “seems even more uphill” than Osborn’s and Bodnar’s campaigns.
Beaudion said in a statement that he would not back Bengs or Rounds. He also criticized Bengs, though not by name, for what he called “intimidating threats to drop out of this race.”
In an interview Monday, Beaudion had insisted he would remain in the race, describing efforts to secure his withdrawal as “political extortion.” He also sharply criticized Bengs, describing him as “untrustworthy” and “proven to stoop to whatever level he has to to make sure he gains power.”
Bengs, a former military officer and prosecutor who was an independent before and after his 2022 Senate campaign, has warned that Beaudion’s presence on the ballot could jeopardize his chances of defeating Rounds. He’s said that he would not caucus with either major party if elected to the Senate.
Bengs has focused his campaign on reducing donor influence in politics, making health care more affordable, and implementing term limits for Congress.
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