Arkansas gubernatorial election, 2018

General election

General election for Governor of Arkansas

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Asa Hutchinson (R)	65.3	582,406
		Jared Henderson (D)	31.8	283,218
		Mark West (L)	2.9	25,885

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	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 891,509
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Elections in Arkansas, 2018

• General election: Nov. 6
• Voter registration deadline: Oct. 9
• Early voting: Oct. 22 - Nov. 5
• Absentee voting deadline: Nov. 5

• Online registration: No
• Same-day registration: No
• Voter ID: Photo ID required (preliminary injunction issued on April 26, 2018)
• Poll times: 7:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m.

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On the ballot: U.S. House • Governor • Lt. Gov • Attorney General • Secretary of State • State executive offices • State Senate • State House • Special state legislative • Supreme court • Appellate courts • Local judges • State ballot measures • School boards • Democratic primaries • Republican primaries

2022 → ← 2014
Governor of Arkansas
Democratic primary Republican primary General election
Election details
Filing deadline: March 1, 2018
Primary: May 22, 2018 Primary runoff: June 19, 2018 (if needed) General: November 6, 2018 Pre-election incumbent(s): Asa Hutchinson (Republican)
How to vote
Poll times: 7:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. Voting in Arkansas
Race ratings
Cook Political Report: Solid Republican Sabato's Crystal Ball: Safe Republican Inside Elections: Solid Republican
Ballotpedia analysis
Federal and state primary competitiveness State executive elections in 2018 Impact of term limits in 2018 State government trifectas State government triplexes Ballotpedia's Election Analysis Hub, 2018
Arkansas executive elections
Governor Lieutenant governor Attorney general Secretary of state Auditor Treasurer Public lands commissioner

Arkansas held an election for governor on November 6, 2018. The candidate filing deadline was March 1, 2018.

Incumbent Asa Hutchinson (R) defeated challengers Jared Henderson (D) and Mark West (L), receiving 65.5 percent of the vote to Henderson's 31.6 percent and West's 2.9 percent. Hutchinson's 65.5 percent share of the vote was greater than any Republican candidate for governor in state history, surpassing the 59.77 percent record set by Mike Huckabee (R) in 1998. Click here for more.

For more information about the Democratic primary, click here.
For more information about the Republican primary, click here.

For more information about gubernatorial elections in 2018, click here.

SETTING THE STAGE

Heading into the election, the governor was Asa Hutchinson (R). He was first elected to the position in 2014. Hutchinson announced that he would seek re-election on May 16, 2017.

Heading into the election, Arkansas was a Republican trifecta. It had held this status since Hutchinson took office in 2015. Arkansas was also a Republican triplex.

The Republican presidential candidate won Arkansas in each of the past five election cycles. The widest margin of victory was Donald Trump's 27 percent margin in 2016 while the narrowest was George W. Bush's five percent margin in 2000.

Arkansas was one of 36 states that held an election for governor in 2018. Democrats gained seven previously Republican-held seats, and Republicans gained one previously independent-held seat. Heading into the 2018 elections, there were 16 Democratic governors, 33 Republican governors, and one independent governor. In 2018, 26 of the 33 states with a Republican governor held a gubernatorial election, while nine out of the 16 states with a Democratic governor held a gubernatorial election. Seventeen of the 36 seats up for election were open seats (four Democratic, 12 Republican, and one independent), meaning that the sitting governor was not seeking re-election. Click here for more information on other 2018 gubernatorial elections.

Candidates and election results

General election

General election for Governor of Arkansas

Incumbent Asa Hutchinson defeated Jared Henderson and Mark West in the general election for Governor of Arkansas on November 6, 2018.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Asa Hutchinson (R)	65.3	582,406
		Jared Henderson (D)	31.8	283,218
		Mark West (L)	2.9	25,885

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	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 891,509
= 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 Governor of Arkansas

Jared Henderson defeated Leticia Sanders in the Democratic primary for Governor of Arkansas on May 22, 2018.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Jared Henderson	63.3	67,046
		Leticia Sanders	36.7	38,873

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	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified.	Total votes: 105,919
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Republican primary election

Republican primary for Governor of Arkansas

Incumbent Asa Hutchinson defeated Jan Morgan in the Republican primary for Governor of Arkansas on May 22, 2018.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Asa Hutchinson	69.6	143,648
		Jan Morgan	30.4	62,757

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	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified.	Total votes: 206,405
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Campaign themes

Asa Hutchinson

Hutchinson’s campaign website stated the following:

“	1. Tax Cut Continue cutting taxes for ALL Arkansans. Work with the legislature to lower the top marginal rate to 5.9% over the next four years Simplify the tax code, close loopholes, and increase fairness for all taxpayers 2. Government Transformation Reduce the number of agencies that report directly to the governor from 42 to 20 or fewer. This will provide savings and improved services through combined IT systems, eliminated redundancies, streamlined communication, and greater efficiency All with the goal of creating a more efficient, less costly, and more responsive state government 3. Teacher Pay Raise the minimum starting salary for Arkansas teachers by 13% over the next four years – from $31,800 to $36,000. This will give Arkansas teachers the highest starting salaries in the region 4. Ethics Reform Governor Hutchinson supports comprehensive ethics reform to ensure that our elected officials are working for the people and with the highest ethical standards. Require all legislators and constitutional officers to publicly disclose conflicts of interest before debating, deliberating, or voting on a piece of legislation Revoke pensions for public officials convicted of violating the public trust Bolster the enforcement power of the Arkansas Ethics Commission through strengthened disciplinary standards Reform our campaign finance laws to prevent PAC’s from circumventing campaign contributions limits 5. Infrastructure Work with the Legislature to create a long-term highway funding strategy for the state. Must be fiscally responsible and sustainable Will be presented to the voters for approval	”
—Asa Hutchinson’s campaign website (2018)

Jared Henderson

Henderson’s campaign website stated the following:

“	Teachers Arkansas can be the best state in the country to be a public school teacher. Learn More Infrastructure Public infrastructure is critical to Arkansas’s progress as a state. Learn More Ethics Reform It's time to root out corruption in our state capitol. Learn More Small Business Let's give our rural innovators the resources they need. Learn More Criminal Justice We need bold leadership to tackle the rising epidemic of mass incarceration in Arkansas that is wasting taxpayer money and failing to prioritize our toughest crime. Learn More Ending the Cycle of Poverty We must end the cycle of generational poverty. Learn More Health Care We must protect Medicaid Expansion and our rural hospitals and finally tackle the sky-rocketing cost of health insurance. Learn More	”
—Jared Henderson’s campaign website (2018)

Mark West

West’s campaign website stated the following:

“	EMPOWERING GOVERNMENT REDUCTION USING C.O.S.T. INITIATIVE Committee On Spending & Taxation Emphasis on cutting spending so that we can cut taxes Voluntary committee will examine every function of State government Goal is to reduce redundancy, overlap, and inefficiency Send proposed cuts to State Legislature Taxation is theft EMPOWER ECONOMIC GROWTH THROUGH FREE MARKETS Transition to every aspect of the economy into the free market Cut regulation and red tape that is strangling family business End era of government licensing that impedes the growth of family business Engage local businesses in developing marketable job skills for teenagers End income taxes, empowering family businesses for growth and individuals for spending Hemp economy providing plastics, fabrics, lotions, oils, and paper Free markets are the key to economic growth EMPOWERING LIBERTY IN EDUCATION Transition out of federal & state funded and operated public schools Transition into a community-based system funded and operated locally Empower parents with authority over educating their children Empower teachers with the flexibility and resources to educate students Emphasize job-related education to empower students to take control of their future Education is essential to escaping poverty TRANSITIONING ARKANSAS WORKS INTO THE FREE MARKET Examine point that current liabilities are met by current budgets Transition remainder into the free market Protecting children’s services for children and special needs Arkansans Empower local charitable health care providers, organizations, and individuals to meet the need Transition entire system into the free market for lasting solvency and services provided EMPOWERING INDIVIDUAL LIBERTY BY DEFENDING CIVIL RIGHTS Protect religious freedom from State establishment or prohibition, including atheism Protect freedom of speech and press from State censuring, including offensive speech Protect the freedom of assembly from State interference or prevention Protect unlicensed right to own and carry any firearm for self-defense, whether openly or concealed Protect the right to life for all Arkansans, from conception onward Protect the right of every Arkansan to liberty and the pursuit of happiness in all decisions from State coercion * Protect rights to privacy and unwarranted search and seizure from State infringement Protect the citizens of Arkansas from un-Constitutional Federal overreach EMPOWERING COMMUNITIES THROUGH CRIMINAL JUSTICE REFORM Actively work to eliminate laws that inadvertently and inordinately target minorities Protect Arkansans from having any rights stripped away without due process Protect the right of Arkansans to a speedy and fair trial, and from excessive bail Encourage community policing practices in every county, city, town, and community End monetary bail, overuse of fines and fees, and civil asset forfeiture Decriminalize marijuana and expunge records of non-violent offenders Protect rights of citizens to record and/or photo public events, agencies, and agents Abolish solitary confinement and State imposed death penalty Ease collateral consequences of incarceration for transition back into workforce Restoration of voting and gun ownership rights EMPOWERING ARKANSANS THROUGH GOVERNMENT ACCOUNTABILITY Assess fines against legislators, agents, and interests when bribery or ethics violations occur Review and/or repeal any legislation that was passed using bribery or ethics violations All meetings among State officials are to be streamed and saved for public use All elected State employees, families and staff must disclose compromising relationships EMPOWERING VETERANS IN RECEIVING THEIR HEALTH CARE AND WHOLENESS Root out causes of wait periods for VA care including coverage denials Establish better accountability for VA employees Empower private solutions for poverty and homelessness among veterans Medicinal cannabis availability for PTSD and pain management without surrendering gun rights Empower veterans to receive mental health care treatment without surrendering gun rights Empower Veterans’ Advocates in any way possible to make sure no veteran is left behind	”
—Mark West’s campaign website (2018)

Past elections

2014

See also: Arkansas Gubernatorial election, 2014

Hutchinson ran for Governor of Arkansas in 2014. He won the Republican nomination in the primary election on May 20, 2014. He defeated Mike Ross (D), Josh Drake (G) and Frank Gilbert (L) in the general election on November 4, 2014.

Results

Republican primary

Governor of Arkansas, Republican Primary, 2014
Candidate	Vote %	Votes
Asa Hutchinson	73%	130,752
Curtis Coleman	27%	48,473
Total Votes		179,225
Election results via Arkansas Secretary of State.

General election

Governor of Arkansas, 2014
Party		Candidate	Vote %	Votes
	Republican	Asa Hutchinson	55.4%	470,429
	Democratic	Mike Ross	41.5%	352,115
	Libertarian	Frank Gilbert	1.9%	16,319
	Green	Josh Drake	1.1%	9,729
Total Votes				848,592
Election results via Arkansas Secretary of State

Race background

Democratic incumbent Gov. Mike Beebe was ineligible for re-election in 2014 due to term limits. Over a year before the election, polling figures and ratings reports - from sources such as The Washington Post, Larry Sabato's Crystal Ball, Governing and Daily Kos - labeled Beebe's seat as a "toss-up" and labeled Arkansas among the states most vulnerable to partisan switch in the 2014 gubernatorial election cycle.

Despite announcing in December 2012 that he would not run for governor in 2014, former U.S. Rep. Mike Ross (D) re-emerged as a potential candidate in the wake of state attorney general and expected front-runner Dustin McDaniel's exit from the race. "Dustin McDaniel getting out of the race has left a huge void which clearly none of the other candidates are filling or I wouldn't be getting all these calls from every corner of the state...I'm humbled by that and I feel a sense of duty and responsibility to the people of this state to at least reconsider my decision and I'm doing that," Ross said at U.S. Sen. Mark Pryor's (D-AR) re-election fundraiser in March 2013. Ross officially launched his campaign on April 17, 2013. The only other declared Democratic candidate at the time of his announcement, Lieutenant Governor Bill Halter, left the race in July and went on to support Ross.

Ross overtook Lynette "Doc" Bryant for the Democratic nomination in the May 20, 2014 primary election. Former U.S. Rep. Asa Hutchinson defeated businessman Curtis Coleman in the Republican primary.

The Libertarian Party and the Green Party selected their candidates for governor by convention. Libertarian nominee Frank Gilbert and Green Party nominee Josh Drake appeared on the November 4 general election ballot with Ross and Hutchinson.

Money in the race

On May 13, 2014, candidates were required to file pre-primary campaign finance reports detailing their fundraising and expenditures since April 1. Before winning their respective parties' nominations on May 20, Mike Ross (D) and Asa Hutchinson (R) both reported spending more than they took in over the previous month. Ross raised $491,000, while Hutchinson raised $240,375. A large portion of each candidates' campaign expenditures went toward television advertisements.

Heading into the May 20 primaries, Ross reported a remaining balance of $2 million, while Hutchinson had a remaining balance of $904,000. Defeated GOP primary challenger Curtis Coleman raised $62,060 and spent $72,622 in April 2014, while Ross' Democratic primary opponent Lynette Bryant failed to file by the reporting period deadline.

McDaniel cancels campaign

In June 2012, term-limited Arkansas Attorney General Dustin McDaniel (D) filed paperwork to start raising money for his 2014 gubernatorial campaign. McDaniel had been considered the Democratic frontrunner, but accounts that he had engaged in extra-martial relations with a Hot Springs attorney, Andi Davis, whom he met around his 2010 re-election, led to his withdrawal from the race. He dropped out of the race on January 25, 2013, explaining in an e-mail to supporters, "I had hoped that I could shape the 2014 gubernatorial debate with my vision for the future. Unfortunately, I am now convinced that if I run for Governor, this campaign would be about me personally, rather than Arkansas's future."

Ballot access for political parties

See also: Process for establishing a political party in Arkansas

In Arkansas, the process to establish a political party is tied to the votes cast in a presidential or gubernatorial election. In order to initially put candidates on the ballot, political parties must submit a petition with 10,000 signatures. Then, in order to maintain that status beyond the election year in which they submit such a petition, their candidate for governor or president must receive at least 3 percent of the votes cast for that office.

In 2012, both the Libertarian and Green parties of Arkansas qualified to put candidates on the ballot, but their candidates did not receive enough votes for the parties to maintain their ballot status. In the fall of 2013, both parties submitted new petitions and were qualified to put candidates on the 2014 ballot. In order to maintain their status as political parties without needing to petition for the 2016 elections, their candidates for governor had to receive at least 3 percent of the vote. Frank Gilbert (L) earned 1.9 percent of the vote and Josh Drake (G) earned 1.1 percent of the vote.

According to an April 2014 poll, the likelihood of the Libertarian and Green Parties to maintain their status in the state depended on who the Democratic and Republican Parties ran in the gubernatorial election. With nominees Republican Asa Hutchinson and Democrat Mike Ross on the ballot, 3 percent of those polled said they would vote for the Libertarian candidate and 2 percent said they would vote for the Green Party candidate. Had Democrat Lynette Bryant advanced with Hutchinson, those likely to vote for the Libertarian candidate remained the same while those likely to vote for the Green Party candidate rose to 4.5 percent. If Republican Curtis Coleman ran against Ross, those polled were more likely to vote for both the Libertarian and Green Party candidates when compared to a ballot including front-runners Ross and Hutchinson, who secured their respective parties' nominations the month after the poll was taken.

Campaign advertisements

In Asa Plan, Hutchinson lays out his "New Job's Plan for 2015 & Beyond" - Posted 4/28/14

Polls

See also: Ballotpedia's approach to covering polls=

General election
All candidates

Governor of Arkansas: Four-way race
Poll	Asa Hutchinson (R)	Mike Ross (D)	Joshua Drake (G)	Frank Gilbert (L)	Undecided	Margin of error	Sample size
Opinion Research Associates, Inc. October 25-26, 2014	42%	44%	1%	2%	11%	+/-5	401
NBC News/Marist October 24, 2014	47%	44%	2%	2%	5%	+/-3.9	621
Talk Business & Politics/Hendrix College October 15-16, 2014	49%	41%	2%	2.5%	5.5%	+/-2.2	2,075
Suffolk/USA Today September 20-23, 2014	43%	41%	2%	3%	11%	+/-4.4	500
Public Policy Polling September 18-21, 2014	44%	38%	2%	3%	13%	+/-2.6	1,453
Gravis Marketing September 8-11, 2014	46%	42%	0%	2%	10%	+/-4.0	902
Southern Progress Poll September 7-9, 2014	44%	44%	2%	2%	8%	+/-3.5	600
AVERAGES	45%	42%	1.57%	2.36%	9.07%	+/-3.66	936
Note: The polls above may not reflect all polls that have been conducted in this race. Those displayed are a random sampling chosen by Ballotpedia staff. If you would like to nominate another poll for inclusion in the table, send an email to editor@ballotpedia.org.

**Due to the nature of the comparison, a placeholder figure of 0% is assigned to candidates not included in any given match-up round Hutchinson vs. Ross (April 2014 - present)

Governor of Arkansas: Hutchinson vs. Ross
Poll	Asa Hutchinson (R)	Mike Ross (D)	Don't know	Margin of error	Sample size
University of Arkansas October 21-27, 2014	50%	39%	11%	+/-3.6	747
New York Times/CBS News/YouGov September 20-October 1, 2014	49%	38%	13%	+/-2	1,991
Public Policy Poll August 1-3, 2014	43%	38%	12%	+/-3	1,066
Rasmussen Reports May 27-28, 2014	48%	41%	6%	+/-4	750
NBC/Marist April 30-May 4, 2014	49%	42%	7%	+/-2.9	876
AVERAGES	47.8%	39.6%	9.8%	+/-3.1	1,086
Note: The polls above may not reflect all polls that have been conducted in this race. Those displayed are a random sampling chosen by Ballotpedia staff. If you would like to nominate another poll for inclusion in the table, send an email to editor@ballotpedia.org.

Hutchinson vs. Ross (February 2014 - April 2014)

Governor of Arkansas: Hutchinson vs. Ross
Poll	Asa Hutchinson (R)	Mike Ross (D)	Don't know	Margin of error	Sample size
Public Policy Poll April 25-27, 2014	46%	38%	16%	+/-3.4	840
New York Times/Kaiser Family Foundation Poll April 8-15, 2014	41%	40%	16%	+/-4.0	857
Opinion Research Associates April 1-8, 2014	39%	45%	17%	+/-5.0	400
Hendrix College/Talk Business April 3-4, 2014	43%	44%	8%	+/-3.0	1,068
OnMessage March 11-13, 2014	44%	36%	15%	+/-4.0	600
Impact February 10, 2014	42%	42%	17%	+/-2.83	1,202
Rasmussen Reports February 4-5, 2014	41%	44%	12%	+/-4.5	500
Public Policy Polling/Americans United for Change December 13-15, 2013	44%	43%	14%	+/-3.1	1,004
Talk Business/Hendrix College Poll October 8, 2013	41%	37%	22%	+/-4.0	603
Talk Business/Hendrix College February 20, 2013	43%	38%	19%	+/-3.8	675
AVERAGES	42.4%	40.7%	15.6%	+/-3.76	774.9
Note: The polls above may not reflect all polls that have been conducted in this race. Those displayed are a random sampling chosen by Ballotpedia staff. If you would like to nominate another poll for inclusion in the table, send an email to editor@ballotpedia.org.

Context of the 2018 election

Race rating

Race ratings: Arkansas gubernatorial election, 2018
Race tracker	Race ratings
	November 5, 2018	October 30, 2018	October 23, 2018	October 16, 2018
The Cook Political Report	Solid Republican	Solid Republican	Solid Republican	Solid Republican
Inside Elections with Nathan L. Gonzales	Solid Republican	Solid Republican	Solid Republican	Solid Republican
Larry J. Sabato's Crystal Ball	Safe Republican	Safe Republican	Safe Republican	Safe Republican
Note: Ballotpedia updates external race ratings every two weeks throughout the election season.

L2 header example for election pages

See also: Winning streaks in 2018 gubernatorial elections

Hutchinson's victory in the general election started a Republican winning streak in Arkansas gubernatorial elections. His back-to-back victories in 2014 and 2018 were one of three Republican winning streaks in state history, with the others occurring in 1966-1968 and 1998-2002. The longest Democratic winning streak in state history was 47 elections, occurring between 1874 and 1964.

Wave election analysis

See also: Wave elections (1918-2016)

The term wave election is frequently used to describe an election cycle in which one party makes significant electoral gains. How many seats would Republicans have had to lose for the 2018 midterm election to be considered a wave election?

Ballotpedia examined the results of the 50 election cycles that occurred between 1918 and 2016—spanning from President Woodrow Wilson's (D) second midterm in 1918 to Donald Trump's (R) first presidential election in 2016. We define wave elections as the 20 percent of elections in that period resulting in the greatest seat swings against the president's party.

Applying this definition to gubernatorial elections, we found that Republicans needed to lose seven seats for 2018 to qualify as a wave election.

The chart below shows the number of seats the president's party lost in the 11 gubernatorial waves from 1918 to 2016. Click here to read the full report.

Gubernatorial wave elections
Year	President	Party	Election type	Gubernatorial seats change	Elections analyzed
1970	Nixon	R	First midterm	-12	35
1922	Harding	R	First midterm	-11	33
1932	Hoover	R	Presidential	-10	35
1920	Wilson	D	Presidential	-10	36
1994	Clinton	D	First midterm	-10	36
1930	Hoover	R	First midterm	-9	33
1938	Roosevelt	D	Second midterm	-9	33
1966	Johnson	D	First midterm	-9	35
1954	Eisenhower	R	First midterm	-8	33
1982	Reagan	R	First midterm	-7	36
2010	Obama	D	First midterm	-7	33

State overview

Partisan control

This section details the partisan control of federal and state positions in Arkansas heading into the 2018 elections.

Congressional delegation

• Following the 2016 elections, Republicans held both U.S. Senate seats in Arkansas.
• Republicans held all four U.S. House seats in Arkansas.

State executives

• As of September 2018, Republicans held six of 12 state executive positions. The remaining positions were officially nonpartisan.
• The governor of Arkansas was Republican Asa Hutchinson. The state held elections for governor and lieutenant governor on November 6, 2018.

State legislature

• Republicans controlled both chambers of the Arkansas General Assembly. They had a 75-24 majority in the state House and a 25-9 majority in the state Senate.

Trifecta status

• Arkansas was a Republican trifecta, meaning that the Republican Party controlled the office of the governor, the state House, and the state Senate.

2018 elections

See also: Arkansas elections, 2018

Arkansas held elections for the following positions in 2018:

• Four U.S. House seats
• Governor and lieutenant governor
• Five lower state executive positions
• 18 of 35 state Senate seats
• 100 state House seats

Demographics

Demographic data for Arkansas
	Arkansas	U.S.
Total population:	2,977,853	316,515,021
Land area (sq mi):	52,035	3,531,905
Race and ethnicity**
White:	78%	73.6%
Black/African American:	15.5%	12.6%
Asian:	1.4%	5.1%
Native American:	0.6%	0.8%
Pacific Islander:	0.2%	0.2%
Two or more:	2.1%	3%
Hispanic/Latino:	6.9%	17.1%
Education
High school graduation rate:	84.8%	86.7%
College graduation rate:	21.1%	29.8%
Income
Median household income:	$41,371	$53,889
Persons below poverty level:	22.9%	11.3%
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, "American Community Survey" (5-year estimates 2010-2015) Click here for more information on the 2020 census and here for more on its impact on the redistricting process in Arkansas. **Note: Percentages for race and ethnicity may add up to more than 100 percent because respondents may report more than one race and the Hispanic/Latino ethnicity may be selected in conjunction with any race. Read more about race and ethnicity in the census here.

As of July 2016, Arkansas' three largest cities were Little Rock (pop. est. 198,606), Ft. Smith (pop. est. 88,037), and Fayetteville (pop. est. 85,257).

State election history

This section provides an overview of federal and state elections in Arkansas from 2000 to 2016. All data comes from the Arkansas Secretary of State.

Historical elections

Presidential elections, 2000-2016

This chart shows the results of the presidential election in Arkansas every year from 2000 to 2016.

Election results (President of the United States), Arkansas 2000-2016
Year	First-place candidate	First-place candidate votes (%)	Second-place candidate	Second-place candidate votes (%)	Margin of victory (%)
2016	Donald Trump	60.6%	Hillary Clinton	33.7%	26.9%
2012	Mitt Romney	60.6%	Barack Obama	36.9%	23.7%
2008	John McCain	58.7%	Barack Obama	38.9%	19.8%
2004	George W. Bush	54.3%	John Kerry	44.6%	9.7%
2000	George W. Bush	51.3%	Al Gore	45.9%	5.4%

U.S. Senate elections, 2000-2016

This chart shows the results of U.S. Senate races in Arkansas from 2000 to 2016. Every state has two Senate seats, and each seat goes up for election every six years. The terms of the seats are staggered so that roughly one-third of the seats are up every two years.

Election results (U.S. Senator), Arkansas 2000-2016
Year	First-place candidate	First-place candidate votes (%)	Second-place candidate	Second-place candidate votes (%)	Margin of victory (%)
2016	John Boozman	59.8%	Conner Eldridge	36.2%	23.6%
2014	Tom Cotton	56.5%	Mark Pryor	39.4%	22.9%
2010	John Boozman	57.9%	Blanche Lincoln	37.0%	1.6%
2008	Mark Pryor	79.5%	Rebekah Kennedy(Green Party)	20.5%	59.0%
2004	Blanche Lincoln	55.9%	Jim Holt	44.1%	11.8%
2002	Mark Pryor	53.9%	Tim Hutchinson	46.1%	7.8%

Gubernatorial elections, 2000-2016

This chart shows the results of the four gubernatorial elections held between 2000 and 2016. Gubernatorial elections are held every four years in Arkansas.

Election results (Governor), Arkansas 2000-2016
Year	First-place candidate	First-place candidate votes (%)	Second-place candidate	Second-place candidate votes (%)	Margin of victory (%)
2014	Asa Hutchinson	55.4%	Mike Ross	46.3%	9.1%
2010	Mike Beebe	64.4%	Jim Keet	33.6%	30.8%
2006	Mike Beebe	55.6%	Asa Hutchinson	40.7%	14.9%
2002	Mike Huckabee	53.0%	Jimmie Lou Fisher	46.9%	6.1%

Congressional delegation, 2000-2016

This chart shows the number of Democrats and Republicans who were elected to represent Arkansas in the U.S. House from 2000 to 2016. Elections for U.S. House seats are held every two years.

Congressional delegation, Arkansas 2000-2016
Year	Republicans	Republicans (%)	Democrats	Democrats (%)	Balance of power
2016	4	100%	0	0%	R+4
2014	4	100%	0	0%	R+4
2012	4	100%	0	0%	R+4
2010	3	75%	1	25%	R+3
2008	1	25%	3	75%	D+3
2006	1	25%	3	75%	D+3
2004	1	25%	3	75%	D+3
2002	1	25%	3	75%	D+3
2000	1	25%	3	75%	D+3

Trifectas, 1992-2017

A state government trifecta occurs when one party controls both chambers of the state legislature and the governor's office.

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
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Pivot Counties

See also: Pivot Counties by state

One of 75 Arkansas counties—1.33 percent—is a Pivot County. Pivot Counties are counties that voted for Barack Obama (D) in 2008 and 2012 and for Donald Trump (R) in 2016. Altogether, the nation had 206 Pivot Counties, with most being concentrated in upper midwestern and northeastern states.

Counties won by Trump in 2016 and Obama in 2012 and 2008
County	Trump margin of victory in 2016	Obama margin of victory in 2012	Obama margin of victory in 2008
Woodruff County, Arkansas	8.91%	4.21%	7.46%

In the 2016 presidential election, Donald Trump (R) won Arkansas with 60.6 percent of the vote. Hillary Clinton (D) received 33.7 percent. In presidential elections between 1900 and 2016, Arkansas voted Democratic 66.67 percent of the time and Republican 30 percent of the time. In the five presidential elections between 2000 and 2016, Arkansas voted Republican all five times.

Recent news

The link below is to the most recent stories in a Google news search for the terms Arkansas governor election 2018. These results are automatically generated from Google. Ballotpedia does not curate or endorse these articles.

Arkansas gubernatorial election, 2018 - Google News

See also

Arkansas government:

• Arkansas state executive offices
• Arkansas State Legislature
• Arkansas courts

Elections:

• Arkansas state executive official elections, 2018
• Gubernatorial elections, 2018
• Lieutenant gubernatorial elections, 2018
• Attorney General elections, 2018
• Secretary of State elections, 2018
• State executive official elections, 2018, 2017, 2016

Ballotpedia exclusives:

• State executives compensation
• State of the state addresses
• Trifecta control of state government

External links

Suggest a link

• Governor of Arkansas official website

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