Brookings council discusses choice of June or November municipal elections under new state law

City Clerk Bonnie Foster presented options and implications from House Bill 1130, the state statute that requires municipalities to choose either the first Tuesday after the first Monday in June or the first Tuesday after the first Monday in November for municipal elections beginning Jan. 1, 2026, and to notify the state by Jan. 14, 2026.

Foster said the council's election schedule (a 3-2-2 rotation with three-year terms) will need to shift to match the chosen date; the effect is that current officeholders' terms will be extended until the newly selected election date. She said the Brookings County Finance Office prefers a November date, while the Brookings School District had earlier indicated a preference for June to align with July 1 term starts. Foster noted that municipalities are not legally required to match school or county dates, but many local officials prefer to coordinate for administrative convenience and to limit costs.

Foster reviewed local data: historically combined city elections drew roughly 2,500 ballots from about 12,000 registered voters; a combined city-school election cost about $21,000, and a city-only election about $2,000 less. She said Brookings County had budgeted about $215,400 for elections in 2026 but that the city's share of that amount was not specified. Foster also summarized turnout differences by month: June elections have typically produced lower turnout than November; June ballots can also require more ballot-style variations in some years, complicating tabulation and staff work.

Key operational uncertainties remain, Foster said, including absentee/early-voting windows (municipalities historically used 15 days for early voting; federal/state contests use 45 days), petition and vacancy timelines, whether nonpartisan city and school races will appear with party labels if placed on partisan ballots, and how canvass and swearing-in dates align with municipal and school processes. She said the Secretary of State, municipal and county associations are meeting to provide further guidance and that additional clarifications were expected in October.

Council members and representatives from the Brookings School Board and Brookings County asked questions about costs, voter demographics (including SDSU students), ballot styles, vote-center operations, canvass timelines and the effect on budget and onboarding of newly elected officials. Several attendees urged continued coordination between the city, county and school district and requested a follow-up joint study session once county and state guidance is available.

Foster said the city can schedule additional joint study sessions and reiterated the Jan. 14, 2026, deadline for the council to select its election date.