|
|
| |
| Wed, Aug. 20, 2008 |  |
 |
|
||
| |
After presidential primaries, what's left? Sunday, Feb 3, 2008 By Rob Moritz Arkansas News Bureau LITTLE ROCK - Since the Legislature in 2005 voted to bump the presidential primary up three months, all everybody has been talking about is whether the state will be a major player on Super Tuesday in the selection of the Republican and Democratic nominees, and whether the two candidates with ties to Arkansas' Mansion will win the day. Do Arkansas voters even realize there is another primary in the state, on May 20? "I think that is probably a problem," political consultant Mary Dillard of Farmington said. "I think its going to be a real challenge for the candidates who are on the ballot in May" to get people to the polls, she said. The filing period for the May primary begins at noon on March 3 and ends at noon on March 10. Eighteen of the 35 state Senate seats and all 100 state House seats - 29 of those are for seats being vacated by term-limited lawmakers -?will be up for grabs in the May 20 state primary, as well as all four congressional seats. U.S. Sen. Mark Pryor, D-Ark., is up for re-election. Additionally, two state Supreme Court seats and three seats on the state Court of Appeals are up for election on the same day as the state primary. Voter turnout is always higher in presidential primaries, Dillard said, and that could mean fewer voters go back to the polls in May. Kent Walker, a Pulaski County election commissioner, said voters may not know about the May primary but they will come around. "Unless it's in your face, people really don't pay attention," Walker said. "After the (presidential) primary the voters will turn to the May primary." The May primary may not be as sexy as Super Tuesday, but some interesting races should capture the voters' attention, said political consultant Stacy Williams of Little Rock. So far, the only statewide race expected is for Pryor's Senate seat. He will face Green Party candidate Rebekah Kennedy, a Fort Smith attorney who has announced she plans challenging the first-term incumbent. Republican Party of Arkansas chairman Dennis Milligan has said he doubts his party will field a candidate against Pryor. Asked to handicap the May primary, both Dillard and Williams pointed to the state Senate District 33 race as one of the most interesting to watch. In that race, incumbent Sen. Irma Hunter Brown, D-Little Rock, is expected to face former state Rep. Joyce Elliott, D-Little Rock. "Both are very prominent individuals," Williams said. "They both have a lot of name recognition." Brown served 20 years in the House before being term-limited in 1999. She returned to the Legislature in 2003 after defeating popular state Sen. John Riggs, a Little Rock Democrat. Elliott, a former high school teacher and teachers union leader, served three House terms. She served on Gov. Mike Beebe's transition team last year. Another race that has drawn some experienced candidates, Williams said, is the Senate District 20 race to replace beloved Sen. Jim Hill, D-Nashville, who is term-limited. Looking to replace Hill are three-term state Rep. Scott Sullivan, D-De Queen, who was House pro teem during the 2007 session, and former state Rep. Larry Teague, a Democrat from Nashville who had a reputation as a budget expert during three terms in the House. In nonpartisan judicial elections, Chief Justice Jim Hannah and Justice Paul Danielson have announced plans to seek re-election and neither is expected to have an opponent. The state Court of Appeals race to watch will be Judge Wendell Griffen's re-election bid against Circuit Judge Rita Gruber of Little Rock, the only announced candidate to challenge the outspoken appeals judge for District 6, Position 1, representing Pulaski and Perry counties. In Northwest Arkansas, lawyers Courtney Henry of Fayetteville and Ron Williams of Springdale have announced plans to run for the District 2, Position 2 Appeals Court seat now held by Judge Sarah Heffley of Rogers. Heffley, was appointed to the seat by former Gov. Mike Huckabee to replace the late Judge Terry Crabtree, who died last year, can't seek reelection. District 2, position 2 seat, covers Benton, Carroll, Crawford, Franklin, Johnson, Madison and Washington counties. District Judge Waymond Brown and lawyer Eugene Hunt, both of Pine Bluff, have announced plans to seek the District 7 seat on the Court of Appeals now held by Judge Brian Miller. Miller, appointed by Huckabee to replace Judge John Mauzy Pittman, who resigned after he was elected to another seat on the bench in 2006, is barred from seek election. The District 7 seat represents Arkansas, Chicot, Desha, Jefferson, Lee, St. Francis and Phillips counties. |
