GOP’s Cooper Defeats Democrat Rockwell In Special Senate Election

Republican John Cooper defeated Democrat Steve Rockwell in a race to replace the vacant Senate District 21 seat in greater Jonesboro.

The vacancy occurred after the resignation of incumbent Democrat Paul Bookout, who left after admitting to ethics violations involving his campaign finances.

The special general election has been a heated race with Republicans attacking Rockwell on social issues and Rockwell’s campaign accusing Cooper of wanting to cut funding for ASU and being an opponent of the private option – the bipartisan-constructed use of state Medicaid dollars for private health insurance passed by the GOP-controlled Arkansas Legislature and Democratic Gov. Mike Beebe last session.

Cooper banked 2,132 votes in the early and absentee voting period to Rockwell’s 1,744. The lead never seemed threatened after the early boxes were opened.

The final unofficial tally was 4,314 for Cooper (57%) and 3,227 for Rockwell (43%).

Cooper, a Tea Party conservative who has been active in local politics, is a retired AT&T worker, a veteran, and an ordained Baptist minister, according to his web site. He describes himself as “unwaveringly conservative.”

Cooper has laid out his opposition to the private option, abortion, and gun control laws. He wants tax and regulation reform to help increase jobs and grow the economy. He is also an advocate for establishing streaming video of Senate committee hearings and thinks that Ethics Commission hearings should also be open to the public.

He will be sworn in to the Arkansas State Senate before the Arkansas General Assembly convenes on Feb. 10 for its biennial fiscal session.

With Cooper’s victory, Republicans hold a 22-13 advantage over Democrats in the 35-member State Senate.