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Arkansas' 4th Congressional District election, 2026

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2024
Arkansas' 4th Congressional District
Ballotpedia Election Coverage Badge.png
Democratic primary
Republican primary
General election
Election details
Filing deadline: November 12, 2025
Primary: March 3, 2026
Primary runoff: March 31, 2026
General: November 3, 2026
How to vote
Poll times:

7:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m.
Voting in Arkansas

Race ratings
Cook Political Report: Solid Republican
DDHQ and The Hill: Pending
Inside Elections: Solid Republican
Sabato's Crystal Ball: Safe Republican
Ballotpedia analysis
U.S. Senate battlegrounds
U.S. House battlegrounds
Federal and state primary competitiveness
Ballotpedia's Election Analysis Hub, 2026
See also
Arkansas' 4th Congressional District
U.S. Senate1st2nd3rd4th
Arkansas elections, 2026
U.S. Congress elections, 2026
U.S. Senate elections, 2026
U.S. House elections, 2026

All U.S. House districts, including the 4th Congressional District of Arkansas, are holding elections in 2026. The general election is November 3, 2026. The primary was March 3, 2026, and a primary runoff is March 31, 2026. The filing deadline was November 12, 2025. The outcome of this race will affect the partisan balance of the U.S. House of Representatives in the 120th Congress. All 435 U.S. House districts are up for election.

Currently, Republicans have a 218-214 majority with three vacancies in the chamber.[1] To read more about the U.S. House elections taking place this year, click here. For more information about the primaries in this election, click on the links below:

Candidates and election results

General election

The candidate list in this election may not be complete.

General election for U.S. House Arkansas District 4

Incumbent Bruce Westerman and James Russell are running in the general election for U.S. House Arkansas District 4 on November 3, 2026.

Candidate
Image of Bruce Westerman
Bruce Westerman (R)
Image of James Russell
James Russell (D) Candidate Connection

Candidate Connection = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.

Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Democratic primary election

Democratic primary for U.S. House Arkansas District 4

James Russell defeated Steven O'Donnell in the Democratic primary for U.S. House Arkansas District 4 on March 3, 2026.

Candidate
%
Votes
Image of James Russell
James Russell Candidate Connection
 
53.0
 
13,228
Image of Steven O'Donnell
Steven O'Donnell Candidate Connection
 
47.0
 
11,740

Total votes: 24,968
Candidate Connection = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.

Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Republican primary election

The Republican primary election was canceled. Incumbent Bruce Westerman advanced from the Republican primary for U.S. House Arkansas District 4.

Candidate profiles

This section includes candidate profiles that may be created in one of two ways: either the candidate completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey, or Ballotpedia staff may compile a profile based on campaign websites, advertisements, and public statements after identifying the candidate as noteworthy. For more on how we select candidates to include, click here.

Image of James Russell

WebsiteFacebookX

Party: Democratic Party

Incumbent: No

Submitted Biography "From his family's farming in Lafayette Co beginning in the 1860s to working with youth groups in Columbia Co in the 1990s, James Russell has been deeply invested in securing the best future possible for every Arkansan and American. Since 2014, he has also been providing statewide mental healthcare, a commitment that he believes will shape the political landscape of Arkansas leading up to the 2026 midterm elections. James is a husband, father, uncle, and now great-uncle. He studied a joint Pre-Med/Pre-Law curriculum at University of Central Arkansas in Conway, AR that focused on legal, political, and ethical theory. He is an avid lover and creator of music, art, literature, and nature who also has an interest in classic cars. James is a supporter of 2A rights who believes in responsible gun ownership. He believes in preserving individua rights, including the right to bodily autonomy for everyone."


Key Messages

To read this candidate's full survey responses, click here.


Putting People First - Politics today are messed up. Some politicians only care about fame, money, and power. But that’s not what the job is about. Leaders should listen to the people, not hide from them. They should go to town halls, not just big money events. A good leader stands up for the people, follows the Constitution, and works with others to make life better for everyone—not just the rich or powerful.


Economic Fairness - Big companies are making record profits, but workers' pay hasn’t kept up. That’s not right. The cost of living keeps going up—housing, groceries, and everything else. But the minimum wage hasn’t gone up to match. We need fair laws that raise wages, make sure everyone gets equal pay for equal work, and treat all workers fairly. This will help working families now and build a stronger, more fair economy for the future.


Fighting Corruption - For years, the rich and powerful have taken more and more, while the rest of us struggle. That’s not fair, and it needs to change. We need to give power back to regular people—not let billionaires and big corporations run everything. That means making taxes fairer. Working people should pay less, and the rich should pay their fair share. We also need to close tax loopholes and stop the games the super-rich use to avoid paying taxes. They made their money off our work. It’s only right they help pay to fix the problems we all face.

Voting information

See also: Voting in Arkansas

Election information in Arkansas: Nov. 3, 2026, election.

What is the voter registration deadline?

  • In-person: Oct. 5, 2026
  • By mail: Postmarked by Oct. 5, 2026
  • Online: N/A

Is absentee/mail-in voting available to all voters?

No

What is the absentee/mail-in ballot request deadline?

  • In-person: Oct. 30, 2026
  • By mail: Received by Oct. 27, 2026
  • Online: N/A

What is the absentee/mail-in ballot return deadline?

  • In-person: Oct. 30, 2026
  • By mail: Received by Nov. 3, 2026

Is early voting available to all voters?

Yes

What are the early voting start and end dates?

Oct. 19, 2026 to Nov. 2, 2026

Are all voters required to present ID at the polls? If so, is a photo or non-photo ID required?

N/A

When are polls open on Election Day?

7:30 a.m. - 7:30 p.m. (CT)

Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey responses

Ballotpedia asks all federal, state, and local candidates to complete a survey and share what motivates them on political and personal levels. The section below shows responses from candidates in this race who completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey. Candidates are asked three required questions for this survey, but they may answer additional optional questions as well.

Survey responses from candidates in this race

Click on a candidate's name to visit their Ballotpedia page.

Note: Ballotpedia reserves the right to edit Candidate Connection survey responses. Any edits made by Ballotpedia will be clearly marked with [brackets] for the public. If the candidate disagrees with an edit, he or she may request the full removal of the survey response from Ballotpedia.org. Ballotpedia does not edit or correct typographical errors unless the candidate's campaign requests it.

Expand all | Collapse all

Putting People First -

Politics today are messed up. Some politicians only care about fame, money, and power. But that’s not what the job is about. Leaders should listen to the people, not hide from them. They should go to town halls, not just big money events. A good leader stands up for the people, follows the Constitution, and works with others to make life better for everyone—not just the rich or powerful.

Economic Fairness - Big companies are making record profits, but workers' pay hasn’t kept up. That’s not right. The cost of living keeps going up—housing, groceries, and everything else. But the minimum wage hasn’t gone up to match. We need fair laws that raise wages, make sure everyone gets equal pay for equal work, and treat all workers fairly. This will help working families now and build a stronger, more fair economy for the future.

Fighting Corruption - For years, the rich and powerful have taken more and more, while the rest of us struggle. That’s not fair, and it needs to change. We need to give power back to regular people—not let billionaires and big corporations run everything. That means making taxes fairer. Working people should pay less, and the rich should pay their fair share. We also need to close tax loopholes and stop the games the super-rich use to avoid paying taxes.

They made their money off our work. It’s only right they help pay to fix the problems we all face.
Better healthcare outcomes and availability of care for everyone.

Improved economic conditions for working class Americans. Ensuring that everyone has a safe, stable living environment. Bringing rationality, reason, and understanding back to public discourse.

Ensuring that everyone's voice is heard, not just the wealthiest among us.


Campaign finance

Name Party Receipts* Disbursements** Cash on hand Date
Bruce Westerman Republican Party $1,848,430 $699,320 $4,182,671 As of February 11, 2026
Steven O'Donnell Democratic Party $0 $0 $0 Data not available***
James Russell Democratic Party $0 $0 $0 Data not available***

Source: Federal Elections Commission, "Campaign finance data," 2026. This product uses the openFEC API but is not endorsed or certified by the Federal Election Commission (FEC).

* According to the FEC, "Receipts are anything of value (money, goods, services or property) received by a political committee."
** According to the FEC, a disbursement "is a purchase, payment, distribution, loan, advance, deposit or gift of money or anything of value to influence a federal election," plus other kinds of payments not made to influence a federal election.
*** Candidate either did not report any receipts or disbursements to the FEC, or Ballotpedia did not find an FEC candidate ID.

General election race ratings

See also: Race rating definitions and methods

Ballotpedia provides race ratings from four outlets: The Cook Political Report, Inside Elections, Sabato's Crystal Ball, and DDHQ/The Hill. Each race rating indicates if one party is perceived to have an advantage in the race and, if so, the degree of advantage:

  • Safe and Solid ratings indicate that one party has a clear edge and the race is not competitive.
  • Likely ratings indicate that one party has a clear edge, but an upset is possible.
  • Lean ratings indicate that one party has a small edge, but the race is competitive.[2]
  • Toss-up ratings indicate that neither party has an advantage.

Race ratings are informed by a number of factors, including polling, candidate quality, and election result history in the race's district or state.[3][4][5]

Race ratings: Arkansas' 4th Congressional District election, 2026
Race trackerRace ratings
3/10/20263/3/20262/24/20262/17/2026
The Cook Political Report with Amy WalterSolid RepublicanSolid RepublicanSolid RepublicanSolid Republican
Decision Desk HQ and The HillPendingPendingPendingPending
Inside Elections with Nathan L. GonzalesSolid RepublicanSolid RepublicanSolid RepublicanSolid Republican
Larry J. Sabato's Crystal BallSafe RepublicanSafe RepublicanSafe RepublicanSafe Republican
Note: Ballotpedia reviews external race ratings every week throughout the election season and posts weekly updates even if the media outlets have not revised their ratings during that week.

Ballot access

The table below details filing requirements for U.S. House candidates in Arkansas in the 2026 election cycle. For additional information on candidate ballot access requirements in Arkansas, click here.

Filing requirements for U.S. House candidates, 2026
State Office Party Signatures required Filing fee Filing deadline Source
Arkansas U.S. House Ballot-qualified party N/A Fixed by party 11/12/2025 Source
Arkansas U.S. House Unaffiliated 3% of qualified voters in the district, or 2,000, whichever is less N/A 5/1/2026 Source


District history

The section below details election results for this office in elections dating back to 2020.

General election

General election for U.S. House Arkansas District 4

Incumbent Bruce Westerman (R) defeated Risie Howard (D) in the general election for U.S. House Arkansas District 4 on November 5, 2024.

Candidate
%
Votes
Image of Bruce Westerman
Bruce Westerman (R)
 
72.9
 
197,046
Image of Risie Howard
Risie Howard (D)
 
27.1
 
73,207

Total votes: 270,253
Candidate Connection = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.

Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Withdrawn or disqualified candidates

Democratic primary

The Democratic primary scheduled for March 5, 2024, was canceled. Risie Howard (D) advanced from the Democratic primary for U.S. House Arkansas District 4 without appearing on the ballot.

Republican primary

The Republican primary scheduled for March 5, 2024, was canceled. Incumbent Bruce Westerman (R) advanced from the Republican primary for U.S. House Arkansas District 4 without appearing on the ballot.

General election

General election for U.S. House Arkansas District 4

Incumbent Bruce Westerman (R) defeated John White (D) and Gregory Maxwell (L) in the general election for U.S. House Arkansas District 4 on November 8, 2022.

Candidate
%
Votes
Image of Bruce Westerman
Bruce Westerman (R)
 
71.0
 
153,850
Image of John White
John White (D)
 
26.2
 
56,745
Image of Gregory Maxwell
Gregory Maxwell (L)  Candidate Connection
 
2.8
 
6,101

Total votes: 216,696
Candidate Connection = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.

Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Democratic primary

The Democratic primary scheduled for May 24, 2022, was canceled. John White (D) advanced from the Democratic primary for U.S. House Arkansas District 4 without appearing on the ballot.

Republican primary

The Republican primary scheduled for May 24, 2022, was canceled. Incumbent Bruce Westerman (R) advanced from the Republican primary for U.S. House Arkansas District 4 without appearing on the ballot.

Libertarian Party convention

Libertarian convention for U.S. House Arkansas District 4

Gregory Maxwell (L) advanced from the Libertarian Party convention for U.S. House Arkansas District 4 on February 20, 2022.

Candidate
Image of Gregory Maxwell
Gregory Maxwell  Candidate Connection

Candidate Connection = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.

Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

General election

General election for U.S. House Arkansas District 4

Incumbent Bruce Westerman (R) defeated William Hanson (D) and Frank Gilbert (L) in the general election for U.S. House Arkansas District 4 on November 3, 2020.

Candidate
%
Votes
Image of Bruce Westerman
Bruce Westerman (R)
 
69.7
 
191,617
Image of William Hanson
William Hanson (D)  Candidate Connection
 
27.5
 
75,750
Image of Frank Gilbert
Frank Gilbert (L)
 
2.8
 
7,668

Total votes: 275,035
Candidate Connection = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.

Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Democratic primary

The Democratic primary scheduled for March 3, 2020, was canceled. William Hanson (D) advanced from the Democratic primary for U.S. House Arkansas District 4 without appearing on the ballot.

Withdrawn or disqualified candidates

Republican primary

The Republican primary scheduled for March 3, 2020, was canceled. Incumbent Bruce Westerman (R) advanced from the Republican primary for U.S. House Arkansas District 4 without appearing on the ballot.

District analysis

Click the tabs below to view information about voter composition, past elections, and demographics in both the district and the state.

  • District map - A map of the district in place for the election.
  • Competitiveness - Information about the competitiveness of 2026 U.S. House elections in the state.
  • Presidential elections - Information about presidential elections in the district and the state.
  • State party control - The partisan makeup of the state's congressional delegation and state government.


Below is the district map in place for this election. Click the map below to enlarge it.

2023_01_03_ar_congressional_district_04.jpg
See also: Primary election competitiveness in state and federal government, 2026

This section contains data on U.S. House primary election competitiveness in Arkansas.

Post-filing deadline analysis

The following analysis covers all U.S. House districts up for election in Arkansas in 2026. Information below was calculated on Nov. 12, 2025, and may differ from information shown in the table above due to candidate replacements and withdrawals after that time.

Eleven candidates — six Democrats and five Republicans — ran for Arkansas’ four U.S. House districts. That’s 2.8 candidates per district. There were 2.3 candidates per district in 2024, three in 2022, 1.8 in 2020, 3.3 in 2018, 1.5 in 2016, and 2.5 in 2014.

No districts were open in 2026, meaning all incumbents — four Republicans — ran for re-election. The last year there was an open district was 2014, when two were open.

Three primaries — two Democratic and one Republican — were contested in 2026. In total, there was one contested primary in 2024, three in 2022, zero in 2020, three in 2018, one in 2016, and two in 2014.

Four candidates — two Democrats and two Republicans — ran for the 2nd district, the most candidates to run for a district in 2026.

Rep. French Hill (R-2nd) was the only incumbent who faced a primary challenger in 2026. There was one incumbent in a contested primary in 2024, three in 2022, none in 2020, two in 2018, one in 2016, and none in 2014.

Candidates filed to run in the Republican and Democratic primaries in all four districts, meaning no districts were guaranteed to either party.

Partisan Voter Index

See also: The Cook Political Report's Partisan Voter Index

Heading into the 2026 elections, based on results from the 2024 and 2020 presidential elections, the Cook Partisan Voter Index for this district is R+20. This meant that in those two presidential elections, this district's results were 20 percentage points more Republican than the national average. This made Arkansas' 4th the 34th most Republican district nationally.[6]

2020 presidential election results

The table below shows what the vote in the 2024 presidential election was in this district. The presidential election data was compiled by The Downballot.

2024 presidential results in Arkansas' 4th Congressional District
Kamala Harris Democratic PartyDonald Trump Republican Party
29.0%69.0%

Presidential voting history

See also: Presidential election in Arkansas, 2024

Arkansas presidential election results (1900-2024)

  • 20 Democratic wins
  • 11 Republican wins
  • 1 other win
Year 1900 1904 1908 1912 1916 1920 1924 1928 1932 1936 1940 1944 1948 1952 1956 1960 1964 1968 1972 1976 1980 1984 1988 1992 1996 2000 2004 2008 2012 2016 2020 2024
Winning Party D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D AI[7] R D R R R D D R R R R R R R
See also: Party control of Arkansas state government

Congressional delegation

The table below displays the partisan composition of Arkansas' congressional delegation as of October 2025.

Congressional Partisan Breakdown from Arkansas
Party U.S. Senate U.S. House Total
Democratic 0 0 0
Republican 2 4 6
Independent 0 0 0
Vacancies 0 0 0
Total 2 4 6

State executive

The table below displays the officeholders in Arkansas' top four state executive offices as of October 2025.

State executive officials in Arkansas, October 2025
OfficeOfficeholder
GovernorRepublican Party Sarah Huckabee Sanders
Lieutenant GovernorRepublican Party Leslie Rutledge
Secretary of StateRepublican Party Cole Jester
Attorney GeneralRepublican Party Tim Griffin

State legislature

Arkansas State Senate

Party As of October 2025
     Democratic Party 6
     Republican Party 28
     Other 0
     Vacancies 1
Total 35

Arkansas House of Representatives

Party As of October 2025
     Democratic Party 19
     Republican Party 80
     Other 0
     Vacancies 1
Total 100

Trifecta control

Arkansas Party Control: 1992-2025
Eleven years of Democratic trifectas  •  Eleven years of Republican trifectas
Scroll left and right on the table below to view more years.

Year 92 93 94 95 96 97 98 99 00 01 02 03 04 05 06 07 08 09 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25
Governor D D D D D R R R R R R R R R R D D D D D D D D R R R R R R R R R R R
Senate D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D R R R R R R R R R R R R R
House D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D R R R R R R R R R R R R R

See also

Arkansas 2026 primaries 2026 U.S. Congress elections
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Arkansas congressional delegation
Voting in Arkansas
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Democratic primary battlegrounds
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Ballot access

External links

Footnotes

  1. A majority in the U.S. House of Representatives, when there are no vacancies, is 218 seats.
  2. Inside Elections also uses Tilt ratings to indicate an even smaller advantage and greater competitiveness.
  3. Amee LaTour, "Email correspondence with Nathan Gonzalez," April 19, 2018
  4. Amee LaTour, "Email correspondence with Kyle Kondik," April 19, 2018
  5. Amee LaTour, "Email correspondence with Charlie Cook," April 22, 2018
  6. Cook Political Report, "2025 Cook PVI℠: District Map and List (119th Congress)," accessed July 1, 2025
  7. American Independent Party


Senators
Representatives
District 1
District 2
District 3
District 4
Republican Party (6)