From the Arkansas Advocate:
This month’s primary elections in Arkansas sent a few crowded races to runoffs after no single candidate captured a majority of the vote.
The March 3 election narrowed down the number of contested legislative primaries from 29 to six. Incumbents are not seeking reelection in 17 House and Senate districts, including the six in which the primary winner will be decided March 31. Early voting begins Tuesday.
Five of the winning candidates will run unopposed in November’s general election.
Notable non-legislative runoffs include the race for secretary of state in which Republican Sen. Kim Hammer of Benton faces first-time candidate Bryan Norris of Batesville. Norris finished ahead of Hammer in a close three-way race in March. The winner will face Democrat Kelly Grappe and Libertarian Michael Pakko in November.
Another non-legislative runoff that has gained statewide attention is the Saline County sheriff’s race. The position is up for grabs after Sheriff Rodney Wright won the primary for Hammer’s Senate seat.
Dustin Robertson and Richard Friend will face each other in a contentious Republican primary. Friend filed a defamation lawsuit March 10 against seven people, including a relative of Robertson’s. Friend claims the defendants made false statements on social media in an effort to hurt his bid for sheriff.
No Democratic candidates are running for Saline County sheriff.
Senate District 15
Rep. Tara Shephard and Charity Smith-Allen advanced to the runoff in the Democratic primary with Smith-Allen earning about 1,000 more votes in the March 3 election.
Voters in this solidly Democratic district in southwest Little Rock will choose the replacement for a term-limited Sen. Fred Love, who won the party’s nomination for governor.
Shephard is an auditor for the American Correctional Association and youth program consultant who has served in the Legislature since 2023. Shephard, who sponsored a law requiring opioid overdose rescue kits to be placed in public schools, is calling for criminal justice reform and improving health care access.
Smith-Allen is a former state Department of Education official who has also worked as a teacher and principal. Her platform includes increased investment in public schools, supporting a “pro-business climate” and promoting paid family and medical leave.
The winner won’t face a Republican opponent in November.
House District 5
Less than a hundred votes separated frontrunner Mike Bishop from Jeff Pratt after votes were tallied in the five-way Republican primary for this Boone County district.
Then men are running to replace Republican Rep. Ron McNair, who is not seeking reelection after serving in the House since 2014.
Bishop, a Methodist pastor and real estate broker, is a former chairman of Boone County’s Republican Party and has served on the boards of organizations working to address homelessness and drug addiction. He is currently a director on the board of Hope Cottages, a transitional housing facility for homeless mothers and their children in Harrison.
Pratt is a real estate agent who previously worked in commercial printing. He was the Harrison city clerk between 2009 and 2023, and served as an alderman for the city between 2002 and 2008.
Pratt is also a member of the Arkansas Realtors Association board. His campaign website touts his volunteer work with the Arkansas Children’s Hospital Circle of Friends, Kiwanis and Harrison Consolidated Youth.
The winner will be unopposed in November.
House District 6
Carroll County Justice of the Peace Hunter Rivett and business owner Cody Rogers will face each other in the Republican runoff to represent parts of Carroll and Boone counties. Incumbent GOP Rep. Harlan Breaux of Holiday Island is not running for reelection.
“Lower taxes, stronger schools, safer communities, and the conservative values that make Arkansas a great place to live, work, and raise a family” are Rivett’s priorities, according to his website.
In addition to co-owning an event venue in Omaha, Rogers is a volunteer firefighter and Salvation Army bell ringer, “an avid hunter and gun enthusiast” and the son of a Christian pastor, according to his website.
“My faith guides everything I do, and it informs my political worldview,” Rogers’ website said. “Our rights were given to us by God, not the government.”
The winner won’t face a Democratic opponent in November.
House District 35
Just one vote separated Joyce Ann Gray and Audrey Willis in a five-way race for this east Arkansas district’s Democratic nomination.
The district spans portions of Crittenden and Cross counties has an open seat because incumbent Democratic Rep. Jessie McGruder is seeking the Senate District 9 seat, which is currently held by term-limited Democratic Sen. Reginald Murdock.
Gray is a member of the West Memphis School Board who’s focused on strengthening education, supporting economic opportunity and improving quality of life for families.
Willis is the co-founder of CodeCrew, which teaches students coding. Her platform includes expanding access to tech training, strengthening early childhood education and literacy, and encouraging economic development.
The winner of the Democratic primary will face Robert Thorne Jr., the Republican who lost the 2024 election for the seat by 123 votes.
House District 46
A single vote separated Paris City Council Member Tonya Fletcher and Curtis Varnell, a teacher, in the crowded Republican primary in this western Arkansas district, which drew four candidates.
The runoff effectively decides the district’s next representative, as no Libertarians or Democrats have filed to run. The district is comprised of parts of Johnson, Logan, Sebastian and Franklin counties.
The winner will succeed Republican Rep. Jon Eubanks of Paris, who is term-limited. The district contains the site of the planned Franklin County prison, which has earned the ire of residents living nearby. Both candidates have voiced opposition to the project.
House District 52
Yell County Justice of the Peace Brent Montgomery and Arkansas Tech University staff member Kristain Thompson emerged from a four-person Republican primary to face each other in a River Valley-area runoff.
The district includes all of Scott County and parts of Sebastian and Yell counties.
Thompson is a two-time Arkansas Tech graduate and works as the university’s director of NCAA compliance. Thompson’s policy priorities are public safety, government transparency, supporting agriculture and rural infrastructure and expanding educational and workforce opportunities, according to his campaign website.
Montgomery is a cattle farmer and volunteer firefighter in his second term in Yell County government, according to his campaign Facebook page. Thompson said on his Facebook page that he will be guided by “Christian conservative principles.”
The winner will not face a Democratic opponent in November and will succeed Rep. Marcus Richmond, a Republican from Harvey who declined to run for reelection.
