The first round of municipal candidates made their campaigns official Friday, marking the beginning of the local election filing period.
Anyone who wants to run for an open City Council, city attorney, city clerk or mayoral position can do so until noon Aug. 17. The Benton and Washington county clerks' offices are open 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Monday through Friday.
Candidate filings
The following candidates filed for municipal offices in cities other than Bentonville, Fayetteville, Rogers and Springdale on Friday.
Benton County
Avoca
Recorder/Treasurer
Nanette Barnes*
Bella Vista
City Clerk
Wayne Jertson*
Mayor
Peter Christie*
Ward 1, Position 2
Dylan Shaddox
Ward 2, Position 2
Christian Henning
Cave Springs
Mayor
Randall Noblett
Ward 3, Position 1
Mike Middlecamp
Centerton
Mayor
Bill Edwards*
Ward 2, Position 2
Josie Reed*
Ward 3, Position 1
Wayne Low*
Ward 3, Position 2
Darren Warren*
Decatur
Mayor
Bob Tharp*
Gravette
City Clerk
Mike Von Ree*
Mayor
Dale Ayres
Kurt Maddox*
Ward 1, Position 2
Jeff Davis*
Ward 2, Position 1
Margo Thomas*
Lowell City Clerk
Liz Estes
Ward 1, Position 2
Lonnie Jones*
Washington County
Farmington
City Attorney
Steve Tennant*
City Clerk
Kelly Penn*
Mayor
Ernie Penn*
Ward 1, Position 2
Abigail Spinks
Ward 2, Position 2
Linda Bell*
Ward 3, Position 2
Bobby Morgan*
Ward 4, Position 2
Shelly Parsley*
Greenland
Mayor
Bill Groom*
Ward 3, Position 2
Justin Reed*
Prairie Grove
Mayor
Charles “Sonny” Hudson*
Ward 2, Position 1
Robert Cunningham*
*denotes incumbent
Source: Staff report
Staff members at both offices said filings ran smoothly Friday.
Stephanie Orman, one of Bentonville's Ward 1 representatives on the City Council, filed to run for mayor. Terry Shannon also put his name in the hat. Incumbent Mayor Bob McCaslin has said he isn't seeking re-election. City Attorney George Spence filed for re-election.
Every elected office in Bentonville is up for grabs. Robert Carr Jr. and Timothy Robinson filed for Ward 1, Position 1. Chris Sooter filed for re-election to Ward 2, Position 2. Aubrey Patterson filed for re-election for Ward 3, Position 1. Two incumbents filed in Ward 4, Octavio Sanchez for Position 1 and Jonathan Terlouw for Position 2.
Four candidates filed to fill the same Ward 1 seat in Rogers. Mandy McDonald Brashear, Clint Hopper, Rick Stocker and Shawn Wright all filed to replace Buddy Wright, who isn't running for re-election. Gary Townzen and Barney Hayes each filed for re-election in Ward 2 and Ward 4, respectively. City Attorney Andrew Hatfield also filed for re-election.
In Fayetteville, four City Council positions are open, along with city attorney. Sloan Scroggin, a planning commissioner, filed to represent Ward 3. Teresa Turk, who serves on the Historic District Commission, filed for Ward 4.
Springdale's city clerk accepted filings Friday and will take them to the Washington County Courthouse. Ernest Cate, the city attorney, filed for re-election. Brian Powell filed to replace Jim Reed on the Ward 1 City Council seat, and Mike Overton filed for re-election for Ward 2.
All municipal contests are nonpartisan. No fees are associated with running for local office.
Candidates need to file three forms with their county clerk -- a petition with ward-specific signatures to get on the ballot, a political practices pledge stating the candidate will comply with state laws for running for office, and an affidavit of eligibility.
A statement of financial interest, which covers sources of income, investments, business interests and other financial information, has to go to the city clerk. That form is due Aug. 20.
A guidebook on running for local office is on the Arkansas Municipal League's website, arml.org.
NW News on 07/28/2018