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County results Thune: 50–60% 60–70% 70–80% Daschle: 50–60% 60–70% 70–80% 80–90% | |||||||||||||||||
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Elections in South Dakota |
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The 2004 United States Senate election in South Dakota was held on November 2, 2004. Incumbent Democratic U.S. Senator and Senate Minority Leader Tom Daschle ran for re-election to a fourth term, but was narrowly defeated by Republican John Thune.
Daschle was the only incumbent U.S. Senator to lose re-election in the 2004 election cycle. His defeat also marked the only time a Senate party leader lost re-election since 1952 when Barry Goldwater defeated Ernest McFarland in Arizona. On November 12, 2024, Thune was elected leader of the Senate Republican Conference, making this seat the only seat in the United States Senate held back to back by a Senate Majority Leader of two different parties.