The candidates for mayor of Sioux Falls, S.D., endured a grueling election season. A first round of balloting earlier this month winnowed a large field to two contenders. Then came a final sprint of debates and fund-raising and endorsements.
Election Day was supposed to settle the matter. But as votes were counted, the lead kept shifting late into Tuesday night.
“It was going back and forth like a seesaw,” said one of the candidates, State Senator Jamie Smith.
In a city of more than 210,000 people, the candidates were separated by two votes by evening’s end. Mr. Smith, a Democrat, trailed Christine Erickson, a former Republican state legislator. Both candidates said they expected a recount.
“When people think, ‘My voice doesn’t count,’ this is a prime example — every vote matters,” Ms. Erickson told reporters in a video posted by The Argus Leader.
The election, which is officially nonpartisan, has importance beyond its tight margin.
With the Republican incumbent barred by term limits from seeking re-election, many of South Dakota’s leading Republicans lined up behind Ms. Erickson, hoping to keep their party in control of the state’s largest city. South Dakota Democrats, long shut out of power at the state level, saw the open seat in Sioux Falls as a chance to gain a meaningful lever of power.
Mayoral races in other cities provided a proof of concept for Democrats. Since President Trump returned to office, Democrats have flipped mayor’s offices in Omaha, Miami and Boca Raton, Fla. They also won a seat previously held by a Republican-turned-independent in Waukesha, Wis. It remains to be seen whether Democratic strength in those races will translate to midterm general elections in November.
Ms. Erickson told reporters at her watch party that “we know that it’s not over” and that “we know that there’ll be a recount.” Mr. Smith said he planned to request that recount if he was trailing.
It remained unclear how many provisional ballots or other uncounted votes could be added to the tally. The county auditors of Lincoln and Minnehaha Counties, both of which include portions of Sioux Falls, did not immediately provide details on Wednesday. Results posted by The Associated Press showed Ms. Erickson with 18,280 votes and Mr. Smith with 18,278 as of early Wednesday afternoon.
The partisan backgrounds of the candidates in Sioux Falls were well known, but much of the race focused on the nuts and bolts of running a city, including policing, data centers and homelessness. Mr. Smith, who ran unsuccessfully for governor against Kristi Noem in 2022, called for improvements to public transportation and better outreach to homeless people. Ms. Erickson, who previously served on the Sioux Falls City Council, focused much of her campaign on public safety and affordability.
In a recent debate hosted by the Sioux Falls League of Women Voters, the candidates faced questions about a state-led law enforcement campaign that focused on drugs, gangs and illegal immigration.
Ms. Erickson said that “if we’re not working together, the bad guys win.” Mr. Smith said he thought the Sioux Falls police chief had done a good job in “a very tough situation” but added, “I do not believe in militarizing our Sioux Falls Police Department.”
The moderators also asked the candidates whether they supported updating city ordinances to explicitly protect L.G.B.T.Q. people from discrimination. Ms. Erickson said she would not tolerate discrimination but said she believed the issue was already covered under current ordinances. Mr. Smith said he supported updating the ordinance.
On Wednesday, both candidates were bracing for what could be a lengthy recount process.
“I’m a former wrestling coach, and so I liken this to be an overtime,” Mr. Smith said. “We’re on the mat and it’s still not decided yet. So we’re going to fight till that last whistle.”
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