A Democratic hopeful is seeking to unseat incumbent Republican state Rep. Carlton Wing in Arkansas House District 70, encompassing parts of North Little Rock and the Indian Hills neighborhood.
Alex Holladay is a little more conservative than other people in his party, people he calls his Democratic brethren.
“I think a lot of people are in the middle of things,” he said. “I would say I am more of a moderate.”
And he actually agrees with Wing on a few issues they both feel are important. Holladay supports a law Wing sponsored to limit trans students from competing in girls sports, and he would vote with Wing to phase out the state income tax.
“I run to the grocery store and see how things cost," he said. “I think we need to reduce as many of our in-state costs as we can.”
Holladay works in education management for the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences, working to recruit people to work for the medical center. He says his district has a bunch of families with children like he does, which leads him into the main reason for running: he doesn't like Arkansas LEARNS. This was the massive education bill that among many things, gives tax money to private schools.
Holladay calls the law reckless.
“I can't tell you it's a bad thing today,” he said. “But over time I think it will destroy our public schools.”
Holladay says he probably couldn’t get LEARNS repealed, but he would like to make tweaks to the legislation, like rolling back provisions about teacher dismissal and creating mandatory pre-school.
Rep. Calton Wing likes the law. He called it one of the most significant pieces of legislation that has been passed in this generation.
“What's happened with the LEARNS Act is just incredible,” he said. “Teachers are getting paid more. We have reading coaches. We are addressing literacy."
Wing first ran for office in 2016. His slogan was “let's work together.”
“And I thought politics are so toxic right now,” he said. “There's got to be a better way for us to discuss the issues of the day.”
Wing has lived in Arkansas for much of his life. He grew up here and built his own family in the state.
A former sportscaster, Wing now hosts a local TV show called Arkansas Great Outdoors, where he travels the state to talk about hiking, camping, hunting and fishing.
“I love the people and love the outdoors,” he said.
If he wins another term, Wing's biggest goal for the next session will be to make it easier for people to get off of social safety net programs. He says many people getting long-term government assistance want off the programs.
“If I make another $100 a week, I cross that threshold and lose all of my benefits,” he said. “What happens is people are not incentivized to try.”
Wing hopes to create a sliding scale to help people become less dependent on welfare benefits.
Wing and Holladay will appear on the ballot for residents in parts of North Little Rock, Sherwood and northern Pulaski County.
