Tag: arkansas
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Arkansas state Senator Jim Hendren leaves Republican Party, becomes an independent
On Feb. 18, Arkansas state Senator Jim Hendren announced he was leaving the Republican Party to become an independent. According to a statement issued by his organization, Common Ground AR, Hendren said, “This comes after many sleepless nights; a lot of serious consideration; and it comes with sadness and disappointment. But it’s clear-eyed. I’m making…
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Voters decide runoff elections for two school board seats in Little Rock, Arkansas
A runoff election was held on December 1 for two seats on the Little Rock School District school board in Arkansas. The general election took place on November 3, with the top two candidates in each district advancing to the runoff. The seven other seats on the board were decided in the general election. Evelyn…
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Arkansas Supreme Court clarifies deference prohibition
The Arkansas Supreme Court on October 29 clarified in American Honda Motor Co. v. Walther that state courts should not exercise deference to state agency interpretations of statutes. Instead, the court held that Arkansas state courts should review agency statutory interpretations de novo—without deference to a previous interpretation of the underlying statute in question. The court’s decision…
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French Hill wins election to fourth term in U.S. House
Incumbent French Hill (R) defeated challenger Joyce Elliott (D) in the general election for Arkansas’ 2nd Congressional District. Hill was first elected in 2014, and won his subsequent re-election campaigns in 2016 and 2018 58%-37% and 52%-46%, respectively. He led Elliott 55% to 45% in preliminary 2020 results. The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee (DCCC) included…
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Arkansas Supreme Court removes third citizen initiative from November ballot, leaving three legislative referrals for voters to decide
On September 17, the Arkansas Supreme Court removed Issue 6 from the November ballot. The referendum would have allowed voters to either repeal or uphold Act 579, which was designed to amend the definition of practice of optometry to allow optometrists to perform certain surgical procedures that were previously only performed by ophthalmologists. A yes…
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Ranked-choice voting and redistricting commission initiatives blocked from Arkansas ballot
On August 27, two Arkansas citizen-initiated measures—one that would have established a redistricting commission (Issue 4) and another that would have established ranked-choice voting (Issue 5)—were blocked by the Arkansas Supreme Court from appearing on the November ballot. The measures were provisionally certified for the ballot on August 21, 2020. The redistricting measure, sponsored by…
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Ranked-choice voting and redistricting commission initiatives provisionally certified for Arkansas ballot
Two Arkansas citizen-initiated measures—one that would establish ranked-choice voting and another that would establish a redistricting commission—were provisionally certified for the ballot on August 21, 2020. Whether or not votes will be counted for the measures is a question pending before the Arkansas Supreme Court. Sponsored by Open Primaries Arkansas, the ranked-choice voting measure would…
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Fate of four initiatives in Arkansas uncertain due to state law requiring signature gatherers to certify that they passed background checks
A veto referendum concerning eye surgeries, which was certified on January 31 to appear on the November ballot, is awaiting a final determination from the Arkansas Supreme Court about whether it will remain on the ballot. Arkansans for Healthy Eyes (opponents of the veto referendum effort) filed a lawsuit on February 28, 2020, alleging…
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Hodges resigns from Arkansas House to take new job with community college
Grant Hodges (R) resigned from the Arkansas House of Representatives on July 10. Hodges’ resignation came just before he started a new job as the executive director of community and government relations at Northwest Arkansas Community College on July 13. Hodges’ resignation was expected after he announced his acceptance of the new role in late…
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Three Arkansas initiative campaigns submit signatures by Monday deadline
The signature deadline for citizen initiatives in Arkansas passed on Monday, July 6, 2020. Sixteen initiatives were filed targeting the November 2020 ballot in Arkansas. Three campaigns submitted signatures. All three measures were constitutional amendments, which means 89,151 valid signatures are required to qualify for the ballot. 1. Arkansas Voters First sponsored a constitutional amendment…