South Dakota Voters Express Strong Broad Support for Vaccines

Key Findings

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A new statewide survey by co/efficient for South Dakota Families for Vaccines shows that South Dakota voters and parents strongly favor maintaining established public health protections while carefully limiting exemptions and policies that could undermine community safety.

While residents broadly support flexibility for legitimate medical needs, they draw clear distinctions with exemptions for personal belief, religion, or philosophy. These attitudes extend beyond policy into expectations of political leadership, shaping how voters evaluate candidates and the role of government in safeguarding public health.

  • South Dakotans overwhelmingly view traditional vaccinations as important (89%), safe (88%), and effective (93%).

  • By a 3:1 margin, voters back a medical freedom approach without negative impacts on others.

    • 75% say medical decisions should balance personal choice with responsibility to protect others.

  • Three-fourths support school vaccine requirements, with strong backing for medical exemptions (81%), but hesitancy toward religious (45%) and philosophical (31%) exemptions.

    • Nearly two-thirds say removing school vaccine requirements is a risk to children.

  • More than six in ten say elected officials have a responsibility to protect public health, and 68% say they will be more likely to vote for a candidate who supports public health initiatives.

Considered together, these findings challenge simplistic narratives about vaccine attitudes. While South Dakotans value personal liberty, they also show strong trust in traditional vaccines, broad concern about disease spread, and a clear preference for policies that balance individual choice with collective responsibility.