Jury Pool Profile
Buffalo County, South Dakota
- County seat
- Gann Valley
- Judicial district
- 1st Judicial Circuit Court
- Population (July 2025 estimate)
- 1,802
- Census PEP. The five-year ACS survey average is 1,808.
At a glance
Buffalo County is a 1,802-person venue. The county population is 17% White (Census race-alone categories). Median household income is $35,054, $42,440 below the SD state median of $77,494; 9.9% of residents 25 and over hold a bachelor's degree or higher. The largest employment sector is Education & health services, at 17.2% of covered employment, average pay $84,482/year. Trailing-12-month unemployment is 3.95%, above the 2.15% state average. The county carried the Democratic presidential candidate in 2016, 2020, and 2024, taking 60% to 64% of the vote across the three.
- Population
- 1,808
- Median household income
- $47,045
- Unemployment
- 4.0%
Who sits on a jury?
<50% in any single race-alone group. White here: 17%; Black: 0%.
Buffalo County has a population of 1,808, with a median age of 22.8. By Census race-alone categories, White residents make up 17.5%; Black residents 0.0%. Independently, 1.7% of residents identify as Hispanic or Latino of any race.
The median household earns $35,054; 9.9% of residents 25 and over hold a bachelor's degree or higher; 36.3% live below the federal poverty line.
Economic context
None of the heuristic anchors fired (oil & gas <5%, healthcare/education <20%, manufacturing <15%). Top sector: Education & health services (17.2%).
Education & health services is the largest employment sector at 17.2% of covered employment, followed by Professional & business services at 7.2%. Trailing-12-month unemployment is 3.95%, above the South Dakota state average.
Political composition
Democratic candidate carried this county in 2016, 2020, and 2024 (avg winning share: 62%). 'Strongly' threshold: ≥60% avg.
Buffalo County was carried by the Democratic candidate in the 2016, 2020, and 2024 cycles, with 62.4% in 2024, 64.1% in 2020, 60.4% in 2016.
Languages, households, faith & health
Family households are 64% of all households (thresholds: ≥70% = 'family-dominant'; 50–70% = 'family-majority'; <50% = 'singles/nonfamily-majority'). 0.9% of residents 5 and older speak a language other than English at home (threshold for 'linguistically diverse' is ≥10%).
0.9% of residents 5 years and older speak a language other than English at home. Veterans account for 10.5% of the adult civilian population (116 individuals).