Republicans appeared to solidify their majorities in the Arkansas Legislature on Tuesday, picking up a key Senate seat while their House supermajority hung on several close races.
Democrats trailed by slim margins in races for two Pulaski County House seats held by Republicans and lost ground in rural areas of southeast Arkansas, based on incomplete and unofficial election returns.
Republicans went into the election controlling 26 of the 35 seats in the Senate and 74 of 100 seats in the House, with two House seats currently vacant.
By picking up one Senate seat in south Arkansas with the defeat of Sen. Eddie Cheatham, D-Crossett, Republicans all but ensured they will have at least three-fourths of the seats in that chamber during the next legislative session.
With three-fourths control of either chamber, Republicans can pass appropriations bills without any support from Democrats.
[RELATED: Full coverage of elections in Arkansas » arkansasonline.com/elections/]
Democratic legislative candidates outraised Republicans in several suburban legislative districts, where they hoped that discontent with President Donald Trump would boost down-ballot candidates.
Statewide, however, Republicans held an advantage, raising more than $2.9 million in contested legislative races to just over $2 million by Democratic candidates.
HOUSE RACES
The last Republican lawmaker to represent a district entirely within the Little Rock city limits, Rep. Jim Sorvillo, R-Little Rock, led against his challenger, Democratic attorney Ashley Hudson.
According to incomplete, unofficial returns in House District 32:
Sorvillo 8,182
Hudson 8,075
In previous election cycles, Sorvillo proved capable of surviving challenges from well-funded Democrats in his West Little Rock district. This year, Hudson nearly doubled Sorvillo's fundraising, while highlighting a number of "present" votes Sorvillo cast on high-profile legislation.
Hudson led in most of the night's returns, only to fall behind as the final votes were reported.
"I'm much more happy to be where I am right now than where I was a few hours ago," Sorvillo said. "This is like 2000, that's where I am."
Across the river in North Little Rock, Republican Rep. Carlton Wing also narrowly led firefighter-turned-candidate Matthew Stallings, a Democrat.
In incomplete, unofficial returns in House District 38:
Wing 6,925
Stallings 6,817
Stallings jumped into the race after successfully lobbying for legislation in 2018 that gave sick leave benefits to firefighters diagnosed with work-related cancers. The bill, known as Crump's Law, was named for firefighter Nathaniel Crump, who worked alongside Stallings in the Little Rock Fire Department before dying of colon cancer three years ago.
In Northwest Arkansas, Rep. Megan Godfrey, D- Springfield, appeared to defeat Republican Jed Duggar, two years after she was first elected to the House by a margin of 29 votes.
With 100 percent of precincts reporting, the unofficial results in House District 89 were:
Godfrey 2,855
Duggar 2,161
In southeast Arkansas, former Democratic lawmaker Mark McElroy held a razor-thin lead in his bid to return to the Legislature by crossing party lines and running as a Republican against Rep. Don Glover, D- Dermott. Less than half the votes were in, however.
The unofficial returns in House District 11 were:
McElroy 2,780
Glover 2,712
Facing her first-ever general election challenge, Rep. LeAnne Burch, D-Monticello, trailed Republican Howard Beaty, a Republican from Crossett.
The unofficial returns in House District 9 were:
Beaty 5,329
Burch 4,857
"It's done," Burch said. "I think we've lost the Senate and the House down here."
Democrats' efforts to weaken the Republican majority in the Legislature could be further hampered by the Arkansas Supreme Court's review of eligibility issues surrounding Democratic candidate Jimmie Wilson, who also trailed Republican David Tollett in early returns.
The unofficial returns in House District 12 showed:
Tollett 848
Wilson 340
Republicans have sued to disqualify Wilson from the case over decades-old misdemeanor convictions for illegal use of federal farm loans and selling mortgaged crops. If the Supreme Court rules Wilson ineligible before the results are certified, or if he loses the race, it would flip a traditionally Democratic House district to the GOP.
Wilson was pardoned for his crimes in 2001 by former President Bill Clinton.
SENATE RACES
In one of the most closely watched Senate races, Sen. Cheatham, D-Crossett, trailed Crossett Republican Ben Gilmore.
The partial, unofficial returns in Senate District 26 were:
Gilmore 14,378
Cheatham 9,068
Gilmore, a former aide to Lt. Gov. Tim Griffin, had hammered Cheatham for his votes on a 911 funding bill that raised fees on cell phones to pay for upgrades to the state's emergency response systems, as well the incumbent's decision to vote against overriding former Gov. Mike Beebe's veto of a pair of anti-abortion bills in 2013.
"I think the voters of southeast Arkansas, obviously they've spoken," Gilmore said, after thanking Cheatham for running a hard race. "The conservative values we've talked about ... I think that resonated with people."
Another moderate Democrat from south Arkansas, Sen. Bruce Maloch of Magnolia, was trailing McNeil Republican Charles Beckham late Tuesday.
The partial, unofficial returns in Senate District 12 were:
Beckham 15,285
Maloch 11,704
In the final weeks of the race, Beckham's campaign was beset by revelations that he had been kicked out of a Mississippi high school for wearing a Ku Klux Klan outfit to a Halloween event 20 years ago.
Beckham initially denied the story, which was first reported by the Arkansas Times based on interviews with Beckham's former classmates. However, when the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette obtained court records confirming the story, Beckham apologized.
Elsewhere in Arkansas, incumbents performed favorably.
Sen. Trent Garner, R- El Dorado, led Democrat Keidra Burrell in south Arkansas. In Pulaski County, Sen. Jane English, R-North Little Rock, narrowly led her Democratic opponent, Alisa Blaize Dixon.
Democrat Clarke Tucker appeared to easily win his race to succeed former Sen. Will Bond, D- Little Rock, against Republican Bob Thomas.
Unofficial returns in Senate District 32 showed:
Tucker 27,582
Thomas 15,035
Tucker, who previously served two terms in the House, ran unsuccessfully for Congress in 2018 against Republican U.S. Rep. French Hill.
"We've had a hard year this year and so much conflict," Tucker said. "I really think the Legislature needs to set an example of coming together and working for the people."
In Northwest Arkansas, outgoing Senate President Pro-Tempore Jim Hendren, R- Sulphur Springs, appeared to easily win reelection over Democrat Ryan Craig. Sen. Bart Hester, R-Cave Springs, was leading Democrat Ronetta Francis.
Neither House Speaker Matthew Shepherd, R-El Dorado, nor the incoming Senate president pro-tempore, Sen. Jimmy Hickey, R-Texarkana, faced opposition in their reelection bids.