FARMINGTON — Andrea Jenkins, the Democratic incumbent, faces Republican Robert Dennis in the race for the District 10 seat on the Washington County Quorum Court.
District 10 covers the Farmington area.
Justices of the peace serve two-year terms. The Quorum Court is made up of eight Republicans and seven Democrats.
Justices of the peace are paid $200 per diem on days they attend Quorum Court or committee meetings.
Election Day is Nov. 3. Early voting begins Oct. 19 and runs through Nov. 2. A voter may request an absentee ballot application by contacting the county clerk in the county where the voter is registered, according to the Arkansas Secretary of State website. Voters may download the application from the county website.
The Northwest Arkansas Democrat-Gazette emailed the same questions to the candidates. Their responses are below. Candidates were limited to 200 words per answer.
Question: Why did you decide to run for justice of the peace and what makes you the best candidate for the position?
Dennis: I have served one term as justice of the peace under Judge Marilyn Edwards and a second term under Judge Joseph Wood, which is twice as long as the current justice of the peace. I learned that all issues were not about being a Democrat or a Republican, but about how to provide the needed services to all the citizens of Washington County. I know that both county judges and elected officials would say that I always served my constituents in District 10 honorably and will do so again in 2021. Justice of the peace is part of the legislative body of Washington County and will have a tremendous amount of different issues to deal with in a two-year term. My life experiences, both personal and professional, gives me much broader perspective than my young opponent. I have worked as a national account manager, national retail manager, traveled every state except North Dakota, business owner, branch bank manager and built and flipped homes. I have more professional years of experience than my young inexperienced opponent has been alive. I am now “retired,” which will give me more time to serve as justice of the peace for District 10.
Jenkins: I decided to run for the office of justice of the peace because I have always been interested in the political process of leadership from national to state to local levels. It is of utmost importance to make a difference, listen and help people in the position as an elected official. I have leadership experience in being elected to positions of president and vice president of two honors societies in college, as well as served as a student ambassador that helped garner confidence in my leadership abilities. I feel I am the best candidate for this position because of what I’ve been able to accomplish during my first term and also the productive working relationships I’ve formed with leaders of Washington County. I have worked hard to research the issues, meet with the folks impacted by the issues and be fiscally conservative with county spending.
Question: What area of county government are you most interested in and what specific plans or goals do you have in that area?
Jenkins: Honestly, I am interested in it all. If I had to choose an area that I am excited about seeing changes in our county’s future, it would be the criminal justice system reform ideas we are looking into. I want to see less incarceration and more mental health and addiction treatment options. I want to help with the changes needed to form a more fluid and efficient criminal justice system — flowing from the county jail, to the prosecutors and public defender’s office to the courts, all, in sync. I am equally as interested in continuing to be a good steward of our county tax dollars and speak up against wasteful spending. I advocate for transparency at all levels. I will always stand by the county employees, department needs and what’s fair and in the best interest for all the constituents of our county, not just my own.
Dennis: I would like to propose that Washington County employees that have served two years or more not be subject to dismissal just because a newly elected official is now serving. Many details to work out, but long-term employees that we have spent taxpayers money on should have some protection. Road Department: I would like to see county roads paved or chip and sealed to take away some of the traffic on over crowded roads like Highway 62 and Highway 16. An example would be Garland McKee Road could connect District 10 to Devils Den area and over to I-49. Even bicycles could use it. Also, as more and more homes are built farther from the county seat infrastructure needs to be improved. Sheriff’s Office: Need to have more personal protections for safety. There is more than one law enforcement officer killed every week. If we are to be protected by them, then we need to provide the right equipment.
Question: County Treasurer Bobby Hill is projecting a drop of about $1 million in Washington County’s share of the revenue from the county-wide 1% sales tax after the results of the 2020 census are in. How can the Quorum Court deal with that drop in revenue while maintaining services?
Dennis: We have to run the county like we would run a business. Technology has to improve so that we can get more work done with fewer people, (keep the ones we have, but don’t have an increase in personnel). Who should pay for services not used to benefit all. If a builder puts in a large subdivision out of the cities and Washington County has to spend time and money on approving it, who should pay? The builder or the taxpayer? I think the builder should. The same should be on detention center. If it is a state prisoner, the state should pay. The cities are the same. Time for the county to sell property that they own and don’t use for market value or higher. Just think then they would receive property taxes on it from then on.
Jenkins: As inferred above, frugality is a must. We must not be wasteful with spending. Each department is going to have to tighten their budgets as much as they can. We need to protect our reserves in this process and not allow dips. Certain training, travel and events could and should be suspended if needed. Utilizing as many grant options and funding being channeled for specific purposes from state and national sources should always be researched. It’s going to be difficult, but I have no doubt we will manage, with much needed nonpartisan effort.
Question: The Quorum Court has been discussing an ongoing problem with crowding at the Washington County Detention Center. A study recently commissioned by the Quorum Court offers some recommendations on ways to address the problem. What do you think the county should do to better manage the population at the detention center?
Jenkins: I believe that a criminal justice coordinating committee needs to be formed as soon as possible. We can’t “build” our way out of this situation. The experts have weighed in. We need to make sure all stakeholders are actively reviewing and sharing their data across the system as a whole. We need more pretrial services to keep folks from taking bed space such as using screening and risk assessment tools to allow more home/work monitoring of pretrial inmates. A court administrator for the Washington County judges would be a wonderful manager of data and the flow of the system. A lot of this depends on our budget, of course, but making these changes can save the county money over the long haul, no doubt, and keep the population down at the detention center.
Dennis: I may ruin my chances to win the election, however, I have a reputation of telling the truth, or as it really is in my opinion. The Quorum Court spent 10% of the county’s predicted (jail shortfall) for 2021 plus another $40,000 on the same report some years before, that was in someone’s desk drawer, which would have been 14% of the predicted loss. Or we could have taken the advice of our Washington County Sheriff Tim Helder, who has had 40 years in law enforcement and is, in my opinion as I stated that night, the best sheriff in America who does not want anything but the best for Northwest Arkansas. Then we would have placed on the ballot for the constituents of Washington County to decide if they wanted to have an addition to the current facility. To borrow words from someone else, we can vote for more bars on the cells of a new jail or we can buy bars to place on our homes, doors and windows and become Seattle. I don’t think the Quorum Court should decide, I think the citizens should decide, but it is up to the Quorum Court to place it on the ballot.
Tom Sissom can be reached by email at [email protected] or on Twitter @NWATom.
Andrea Jenkins (D) *Incumbent
• Age: 42
• Residency: Has lived in Dis trict 10 for 14 years
• Employment:
Elementary school teacher, bus driver for Farmington School District
• Education:
Bachelor’s degree in elementary education, University of Arkansas
• Political Experience: Serving first term as justice of the peace
Robert Dennis
• Age: 69
• Residency: Has lived in District 10 for 60 years
• Employment: Retired from food sales
• Education: Attended University of Arkansas
• Political Experience: Justice of the peace for District 10 from 2015 to 2018