Fort Smith municipal elections attracting a lot of interest

There could be 20 or more Fort Smith municipal candidates on the ballot in November. City of Fort Smith Clerk Sherri Gard said the 2026 election cycle may generate the most municipal candidates she has seen in her almost 30 years working in the office.

Candidate packets were first available to be picked up at 1 p.m. May 6 from the city clerk’s first-floor office at 623 Garrison Ave. As of Wednesday (May 27) afternoon, Gard said 20 candidate packets have been picked up.

City positions on the November ballot are Fort Smith mayor and city director at-large positions 5, 6 and 7. Director Christina Catsavis is in position 5, Director Kevin Settle is in position 6, and Director Neal Martin is in position 7. Catsavis is running for mayor, leaving the position 5 seat open. Fort Smith Mayor George McGill, who was elected to two four-year terms, is not seeking reelection.

Gard said as of Wednesday afternoon, there have been seven mayor candidate packets picked up, five packets for city director position 5, six packets for city director position 6, and two packets for city director position 7.

“Each position is for a four-year term beginning Jan. 1, 2027,” according to a note from the city clerk’s office. “Candidates must be at least 21 years of age, a resident of the city for at least six months, and be a registered voter in Fort Smith. All candidates are required to file a statement of candidacy and submit a petition containing the signatures of at least 50 registered voters residing in Fort Smith.

“Statements of candidacy and petitions must be filed with the city clerk within the official filing period prescribed by law, which begins at 12:00 noon on July 29, 2026, and concludes at 12:00 noon on Aug. 5, 2026. Upon sufficiency, all qualified candidates will be placed on the general election ballot.”

Gard said they will likely be more busy with this election cycle than usual with respect to reviewing returned candidate packets — which includes verifying signatures — between July 29 and Aug. 5.

“Yes, but we’ll get it done,” Gard said when asked about handling a higher number of packets. “If we have to spend the night, we’ll get it done, and we’ll get it done right, by the way.”

In addition to an open mayoral seat, the 2026 municipal election has possibly attracted more interest because of an effort to change the city’s form of government. A group of citizens are working to collect at least 2,608 registered city voter signatures to place the question on the November ballot. The signatures must be submitted by late July or early August and verified by the Fort Smith City Clerk’s office for the item to be placed on the November ballot.

In Fort Smith’s form of government, the city administrator is the CEO. Changing to a mayor-council form of government would place city management responsibility with the mayor.

If voters approve a change of government in November 2026 or November 2027, elections for the new government would be held in November 2028. If voters reject a change of government, state law prevents the question from returning to the ballot for four years.