 From 1964, the county showed a strong trend towards the Democratic Party – so much so that it was one of only 130 counties nationwide to support South Dakota native George McGovern in 1972 against Richard Nixon, and one of only five nationwide to have supported both landslide losers Landon and McGovern.Between 1976 and 2010, Deuel was a competitive swing county, voting for the winning candidate in every election until 2008 when Barack Obama lost by 34 votes.Over the past two elections, however, Deuel – in common with many rural counties nationwide – has shown an abrupt swing towards the Republican Party.