elections
Arkansas group pitches hand-count elections to counties as Legislature prepares to weigh in
An Arkansas group with connections to former President Donald Trump is traveling the state with a pitch to county quorum courts: ditch the voting machines. Instead, the Arkansas Voter Integrity Initiative urges counties to rely on paper ballots marked and counted by hand. The group had existed in relative obscurity since it was formed last […]
SESSION SNAPSHOT: Tough love at the Arkansas Capitol as bills stall, fail in Week 6
We start our recap of the sixth week of the 2023 Arkansas legislative session wishing you a happy #arlegvalentines. As for the news, there was a lot of it, but fewer major announcements, hearings and debates than in recent weeks. Here are some highlights from Week 6: Lawmakers filed a host of election legislation on […]
Arkansas Senate committee votes to forbid absentee ballot drop boxes
A group of Arkansas senators recommended Thursday that the full Senate pass a ban on ballot drop boxes — a process that isn’t happening in Arkansas. Bill sponsor Sen. Tyler Dees (R-Siloam Springs) said Senate Bill 258 would prevent the use absentee ballot drop boxes, which he called a “beacon of mistrust,” from coming to […]
Woman jailed for collecting 4 ballots in Arizona sparks fear of voting in majority Latino city
This story was produced in partnership with Type Investigations, with support from the Fund for Constitutional Government. SAN LUIS, ARIZONA — The small city of San Luis is tucked away in the far corner of Arizona, closer to Mexico than to any major U.S. city. The community is nearly 95% Latino and tight-knit — the […]
Organizations recruiting more women for public office
The 2022 election is barely behind us, but Stephannie Lane Baker is already thinking about recruiting candidates, specifically women, for the next election cycle. “If we are going to make progress, we have to do the work year-round…that’s how you change the face of power in Arkansas,” she said. As the executive director of Emerge […]
Our new governor must invest in education
Arkansas just made history with the election of Sarah Huckabee Sanders as our first female governor. Her success in her role as governor will depend heavily upon her investment in education. K-12 education issues were a top concern for voters, and her actions on these will be pivotal for our students, families, communities, and the […]
Future of U.S. election law at stake as Supreme Court hears North Carolina case
WASHINGTON — North Carolina Republicans appeared to have at least three of the U.S. Supreme Court’s conservative justices on their side Wednesday in a case that could determine the future of elections nationwide and leave decisions about federal elections in the hands of state legislatures and beyond the reach of state courts. The Supreme Court […]
Dozens of mayoral seats up for grabs in Tuesday’s runoff elections
Thirty-four mayoral races will be decided in Tuesday’s runoff election. Seventeen include incumbents like Linda Newbury in Union County. The Felsenthal mayor is facing Theresa Howard after both candidates received 24 votes in the general election. More than 70 elections for mayoral, city council and school board positions are occurring in thirty-nine counties statewide. There […]
Democrats strip Iowa of first-in-the-nation prize, tap South Carolina for first primary
WASHINGTON — Voters in South Carolina would go first in picking Democratic presidential nominees, followed by Nevada, New Hampshire, Georgia and Michigan if their states go along with a proposal a key Democratic National Committee panel approved Friday. The Rules and Bylaws Committee’s nearly unanimous voice vote proposes moving the Democratic primary’s earliest election date […]
Arkansas election authority will investigate Phillips County reporting struggles
Ongoing problems with tallying and reporting voting data led the Arkansas Board of Election Commissioners this week to agree to open an investigation into the Phillips County Election Commission. The board unanimously agreed Tuesday to have director Daniel Shults file a complaint against the commission, which failed to upload the results of this month’s election […]
Phillips County recount in Arkansas House District 62 race does not change results
A recount in Phillips County on Monday solidified State Rep. Mark McElroy’s reelection victory in Arkansas House District 62, according to the Helena World, Phillips County’s local newspaper. McElroy (R-Tillar) faced Democrat Dexter Miller, a Phillips County resident who requested the recount Friday. He said he thought something was amiss in the initial results, especially […]
No change to Arkansas House District 56 results after recount
State Rep. Steve Magie (D-Conway) won a sixth term in the Arkansas Legislature after a recount in House District 56 yielded the same 10-vote victory he had after the first count. The district is entirely within Faulkner County, and the recount started Friday and ended Saturday. Magie received 4,051 votes while Republican Trent Minner, who […]