Democrats gain ground in Arkansas Legislature and local government
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Republicans in the Arkansas House of Representatives no longer have the supermajority they've held on to for a decade.
Why it matters: Republicans will need Democratic votes to pass most state spending bills, and that will require approval from three-fourths of the House.
State of play: Democrats in NWA flipped five House seats on Tuesday, according to the AP. The AP had also called four other House flips for Democrats for a total of nine, with two other races not yet called as of Wednesday night. Democrats also kept all of their current seats.
- In NWA, Democrats Jacob Allen, Rey Hernandez, Mitchell Smith, Dan Holtmeyer and Jamie Atkinson defeated Republican incumbents.
- The other flipped seats were won by Democrats Cynthia Nations, Andrew Eberly and Cassandra Mayes in central Arkansas and Dexter Miller in east Arkansas.
What they're saying: "We're a part of the mix, and our perspectives and the things we're doing to help people have to be considered now," Holtmeyer told Axios.
- Holtmeyer, 36, says he wants to focus on reining in vouchers going to nonpublic schools, health care access amid federal cuts to Medicaid and Medicare and putting guardrails in place in regard to the state's cooperation with ICE. This was Holtmeyer's first run for public office.
- Hernandez, 76, won the seat on his third try after losing in 2022 and 2024. He hopes the wins for Democrats bring more balance to the Legislature and that they can focus on more community needs and "people-centered issues," he told Axios.
Context: Republicans currently have 79 seats, and Democrats have 20. The one vacant seat in the House was in District 8, held by Republican Austin McCollum until his August resignation.
- Republican Kara Armas won a special election to fill the vacancy until January, according to the Arkansas Secretary of State's Office. Her husband, Republican Brian Armas, ran unopposed to take the spot in January.
Zoom out: Democrats also flipped one state Senate seat with Allison Grigsby Sweatman's win over Republican state Rep. Brandon Achor in District 13 in central Arkansas, according to the AP. The seat was held by Republican Jane English, who was term-limited.
- Republicans will have 28 of 35 Senate seats while Democrats will increase their spots from six to seven.
Zoom in: The blue wave also touched local government, as Democrats now control a majority of the Washington County Quorum Court in addition to Democrat Dana Deree's win for county judge.
- Democrats Lowell Taylor, AnneDella Hines and Farmington City Council member Diane Bryant unseated Republicans, according to final but unofficial results from Washington County.
- Benton County went from an entirely Republican Quorum Court to Democrats holding four of the 15 seats after wins by Angelina White, Stephanie Guzman-Zamarron, Steven Baker and Cassie Murray took seats currently held by Republicans, according to final but unofficial results from Benton County.
What they're saying: "My identity is more wrapped up in what I can do for the county," Hines told Axios of the Democratic flip.
- This was the first time running for office for Hines, 32, and she says she wants to focus on being an advocate for rural and urban residents, criminal justice reform and appropriately enforcing zoning. She added she's against federal contracts that "allow ICE to operate at extreme in our community."
What's next: The Washington County Quorum Court District 15 seat is headed to a runoff after none of the three candidates received enough of the vote to win. Voters will decide between Republican Justice of the Peace Butch Pond, who led with 49% of the vote, and Democrat Ashley Harvey.