Bootsie Eyes Senate

Bootsie Ackerman, executive director of the Downtown/Dickson Enhancement Project, told the Northwest Arkansas Business Journal that she is close to announcing her candidacy for the soon-to-be vacated District 7 state Senate seat.

Term limits will force state Sen. David Malone, D-Fayetteville, from office at the end of this year.

Ackerman has overseen a facelift of Fayetteville’s Dickson Street and downtown square areas since joining the Downtown/Dickson Enhancement Project in 1997. She is a past recipient of former Mayor Fred Hanna’s Volunteer Service Award and serves on numerous boards.

In 1999, Ackerman was appointed to the Arkansas Pollution Control & Ecology Commission, where she currently serves as co-chairman. She was also named as one of the top 100 women in the state by Arkansas Business in 1999 and is a member of the Washington County Republican Women.

Fayetteville lawyer Conrad Odom told the Business Journal in January that he planned to announce his candidacy for the same post. Sue Madison, a former three-term member of the Arkansas House of Representatives, announced her candidacy in December. Both Odom and Madison are Democrats.

The primary will be held May 21, followed by the general election on Nov. 5.