Boozman wins Senate; Womack wins 3rd District seat

U.S. Rep. John Boozman (R) will soon take a seat in the U.S. Senate, and Rogers Mayor Steve Womack (R) will replace Boozman as the next 3rd District Congressman.

Arkansas voters made a change in the U.S. Senate seat, giving Boozman more than 56% of the vote compared to 38.5% for incumbent U.S. Sen. Blanche Lincoln (D) with more than 72% of precincts reporting.

Also, Republicans captured four of Arkansas’ six Congressional seats — a wide swing from the pre-election margin that had only one of the six seats held by a Republican.

Womack handily beat attorney David Whitaker (D) of Fayetteville with 72.6% of the vote with 36% of precincts reporting.

Boozman’s victory in the race was rarely in doubt. He survived a crowded GOP primary without a runoff, and entered the race against Lincoln — who survived a bitter primary runoff battle against Lt. Gov. Bill Halter — and was never behind in polling conducted on the race.

In mid-July, the first Talk Business general election poll in the Senate race showed Boozman with a 25-point lead over Lincoln, 57-32%. In mid-September, a Talk Business/Hendrix College poll showed Boozman with a 27-point advantage over Lincoln. In mid-October, Boozman’s margin over Lincoln shrunk to 13 points as he held a 49-36% lead. Independent Trevor Drown and Green Party candidate John Gray each received 4% support, while 7% of voters remain undecided in the mid-October survey.

The October poll noted that Boozman had overwhelming support among Republicans (with 86.5%) and was easily winning independent voters (61.1%-18.6%). Among Democrats, Lincoln had the support of three-fourths of her party (74.2%) with Boozman gaining 12.9%.

Like Boozman, Womack survived a crowded GOP primary that saw Womack win a tight runoff race against Sen. Cecile Bledsoe of Rogers. Womack entered the general election race against Whitaker as a heavy favorite, and polling verified his favored status.

An Aug. 25 Talk Business Poll showed Womack with a 55-31 lead over Whitaker with 14% undecided. The race moved further in Womack’s favor, with an Oct. 14 Talk Business/Hendrix College poll showing Womack with a 59-21 lead with 20% undecided.

Commentary from the Talk Business/Hendrix College noted: “Republican Steve Womack continues to dominate the race for John Boozman’s seat in Congress in this reliably Republican district. After a deeply factionalized Republican primary battle, Womack has consolidated Republican support. Our survey shows 88.1% of Republican voters support Womack. He also leads strongly (with 61.3%) among independents in the district.”

"What is going on in our country was what inspired me to run for Congress when John Boozman decided to run for Senate. There was no compelling reason for me to run for Congress. There was no compelling reason for me to leave a great job as the mayor of Rogers,” Womack said after Whitaker had conceded defeat in the race. “I just believed at the time that I could make a difference, and all I wanted was a chance to do that.”

Womack also said his excitement is tempered by what’s next.

“Yes, I am excited, but after the balloons fall and the confetti settles, we have some work to do,” he said.

Womack will enter a U.S. House that will be controlled by Republicans. Democrats were able to maintain control of the U.S. Senate.

OTHER ARKANSAS CONGRESSIONAL RACES
In the 1st Congressional District, Rick Crawford (R) defeated Chad Causey (D) with almost 53% of the vote (74% of precincts reporting). Causey had conceded defeat in the race.

Late in the campaign, Crawford held a 42-34 lead over Causey in the traditionally Democratic 1st Congressional District. However, Crawford’s lead had slipped from the 48-32 margin he held as of Aug. 17.

The 2nd District voters gave Republican Tim Griffin more than 56% of the vote over state Rep. Joyce Elliot (D) with 88% of precincts reporting. An October poll had Griffin up 50-38 over Elliot, but showed a shift in Elliot’s favor from Griffin’s 52-35 lead on Aug. 17.

In the 4th District (which includes portions of the Fort Smith metro area), U.S. Rep. Mike Ross, D-Prescott, recaptured the seat with 57.4% of the vote with 88% of precincts reporting. Beth Anne Rankin (R) ran a close campaign, but was never able to capitalize on the anti-Democratic, anti-Washington sentiment.