Budgeting and fashioning the laws of the state of Arkansas are handled every year by the General Assembly, made up of 100 members of the House of Representatives and 35 members of the state Senate. Here are our editorial board's recommendations in the Nov. 8 general election for contested state representative races in Benton and Washington counties.
District 81
Democrat Susan K. McGaughey of West Fork and Republican Bruce Coleman of Mountainburg are the two contenders to replace state Rep. Justin Harris, who decided to forego a re-election campaign in the wake of the controversy over his "re-homing" of adopted children.
District 81 is a long, mostly rural zone almost reaching Goshen to the north, includes southeast Washington County then runs on both sides of Interstate 49 clear down to the Arkansas River below Alma.
The district has a longtime Republican bent and it's hard to see its voters electing a Democrat to represent them in the state House of Representatives. Coleman's years as an owner of a butane gas company serving the area has given him a good sense of the people's attitudes on local and state issues, and we believe he'll be a fine representative at the state Capitol. He's campaigning on a resistance to over-regulation, saying Arkansans witness more unintended consequences from laws than anyone ever anticipated.
District 85
This district covers areas of Farmington and sections of Fayetteville's southwest, east and part of the downtown/south Fayetteville area. For 2016, Republican Dwight Gonzales, a pastor, is challenging two-term state Rep. David Whitaker, a lawyer, for the next two-year stint in the Legislature.
Gonzales hasn't made the case that District 85 voters should give up an experienced legislator. Whitaker is an Air Force veteran who has worked in both county and city governments. Whitaker has shown leadership on bills to help corporations legally make social activism and environmentally sustainability parts of their missions; enhance penalties for people who cause serious harm to someone else as a result of driving while intoxicated; and provide limited legal immunity from prosecution for an underage drinker of alcoholic beverages if that person chooses to render responsible assistance in an emergency.
Whitaker wants to use a new term to push for better funding for the state's pre-school education efforts and reform of prisons and the justice system as well as the Department of Human Services.
The people of District 85 should continue to benefit from Whitaker's experience in Little Rock.
District 89
State Rep. Micah Neal's decision first to seek another office then to withdraw from that race leaves the District 89 seat open, sparking a contest between Democrat Irvin Camacho and Republican Jeff Williams. The district includes downtown Springdale and areas east and west of there within the city.
Both men have lived within the district they seek to represent for several years. Camacho is a mortgage specialist with a local bank who has been a leading advocate for the Hispanic population and building community relationships in Springdale in the wake of several violent crimes over the last year or so. Williams is a former county assessor who ran for county judge but lost. He also served stints on the Springdale Planning Commission and City Council.
Camacho, who is making his first run for elective office, sounds more like a City Council candidate. And we mean that as a compliment. His focus appears to be more about the kinds of differences he could make at the local level than in state government. Williams, on the other hand, has been slowly building a resume of knowledge and decision-making in city and county government that will serve him well in the political body making laws affecting the entire state. He's campaigned on a desire to improve Arkansas' circumstances of poverty and substance abuse.
We recommend Williams to fill this two-year term, but we can't help hoping Camacho will find the right fit in local leadership. He's a great asset to Springdale.
District 94
The voters of this Rogers district may very well make their decision for state representative based on the "R" and the "D" beside the candidates' names. That probably means incumbent Rebecca Petty will get another term. In our view, Petty has been disappointing as a lawmaker, largely due to lack of depth and breadth on the issues facing her fellow Arkansans.
She's faced, again, with a challenge from retired teacher Grimsley Graham, whose biggest obstacle in Rogers is the Democratic Party he's representing. He's more analytical and knowledgable than Petty, but it's doubtful his politics line up with most voters in the district.
Repeated invitations to Petty to speak with our editorial board met with silence. Graham welcomed the chance to speak to our editorial board. Then he used a substantial amount of his time saying he was running because he feared Petty would be willing to back a "bathroom" law such as the one causing much controversy in North Carolina and the state is "going to suffer for it"; that he would resist the efforts at the state level to prevent municipalities from passing their own anti-discrimination laws for the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender communities; and that he would support the expansion of background checks for gun purchases.
All of those are worthy debates, but we're unconvinced they're the positions or even the issues at the top of the mind of most voters in District 94.
We tend to endorse candidates who demonstrate they've got minds of their own and a willingness to consider all sides. That puts us in Graham's court, even though we're skeptical the political ideology will be palatable to enough Rogers voters to overcome Petty's "R."
District 95
Republican Austin McCollum shocked many political observers in the spring when he ousted lawmaker Sue Scott for the GOP nomination in this District 95 race. In November, he faces off against Libertarian Grant Brand.
We endorsed Scott in the spring, but voters thought differently. McCollum is focused on reducing the burdens of government, such as licensing requirements for some trades or professions. He supports Gov. Asa Hutchinson's proposal of a $50 million tax cut as a good start and might support even more. He wants the state to promote technical and technology education.
Brand's says his Libertarian philosophy will keep him from knocking on doors or asking for any campaign donations, so it's highly unlikely such a campaign will produce good election results. We respect the sincerity of his convictions.
But McCollum got the nod in the spring and, in our view, should do so again this fall to earn his first term in the General Assembly.
District 96
Republican Grant Hodges is finishing up his first term in the state House and continues to do the work as his full-time job. He's had a fairly decent start as a young lawmaker and continues to learn the ropes. He's helped get funding for two volunteer fire department rescue boats on Beaver Lake and pushed legislation to let college students accused of a campus violation to have legal representation in their appeals. He's got fair concerns about the growing costs of Medicaid and how Arkansas will cover them. And he'd like to push for a state tax credit to aid those who
His challenger, Libertarian Michael Kalagias, is a more established resident in Rogers and considers Hodges "politics as usual," and offers himself as an alternative who can work toward less government and no tax increases. The Navy veteran says he has no goal to be part of the "ruling class," while Hodges is all about serving his party.
We like both of these contenders, but give the edge to Hodges in our recommendation.
Commentary on 10/25/2016