Arkansas House, Senate races taking shape
by January 30, 2012 6:59 pm 93 views
With filing season less than a month away, candidates for the Arkansas House and Senate are starting to come into clearer picture.
In the latest update of a Talk Business comprehensive list of all candidates announced or strongly weighing races, a number of new names have been added other names are off the list. Sources inform Talk Business that there is still quite a bit of jockeying that remains.
Candidates on the Democratic and Republican sides are set to come forward in the waning few weeks prior to filing period, which opens Feb. 23.
That means major surprises remain for several incumbents. Also, several open seats are likely to see the field get more crowded based on recent conversations. And, we’ve been tipped to a few potential surprises in the making.
Also, all 135 seats will be up for election due to the decennial census and redistricting process.
A couple of notable developments:
• State Sen. Steve Harrelson, D-Texarkana, is likely to face a Democratic primary challenge and a Republican challenge in the fall, if he is the nominee.
• There are a number of crowded House races, including House Dist. 85 in Fayetteville. Former Third District Congressional Democrat David Whitaker is one of several in that race.
• A number of State Senate candidates remain unopposed, but are not likely to remain that way. Sources suggest that Sen. Larry Teague, D-Nashville, and Sen. Missy Irvin, R-Mountain View, are likely to gain fall opponents.
• It is still astounding that conservative Democrat and former State Rep. Bruce Maloch is running unopposed for the State Senate given the lay of the district.
Link here to view the latest Arkansas House list of candidates from Talk Business & Politics.