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United States Senate election in Arkansas, 2026

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2022
U.S. Senate, Arkansas
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
U.S. Senate, Arkansas
U.S. Senate1st2nd3rd4th
Arkansas elections, 2026
U.S. Congress elections, 2026
U.S. Senate elections, 2026
U.S. House elections, 2026

Voters in Arkansas will elect one member to the U.S. Senate in the general election on 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 election will fill the Class II Senate seat held by Tom Cotton (R), who first took office in 2015.

The outcome of this race will affect the partisan balance of the U.S. Senate in the 120th Congress. Thirty-three of the 100 U.S. Senate seats are up for election, and another two seats are up for special election. Democrats hold 13 of the seats up for election, and Republicans hold 22.

Currently, Republicans have a 53-45 majority in the chamber.[1] To read more about the U.S. Senate 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. Senate Arkansas

Incumbent Tom Cotton, Hallie Shoffner, and Jeff Wadlin are running in the general election for U.S. Senate Arkansas on November 3, 2026.

Candidate
Image of Tom Cotton
Tom Cotton (R)
Image of Hallie Shoffner
Hallie Shoffner (D)
Image of Jeff Wadlin
Jeff Wadlin (L)

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.

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Democratic primary election

Democratic primary for U.S. Senate Arkansas

Hallie Shoffner defeated Ethan Dunbar in the Democratic primary for U.S. Senate Arkansas on March 3, 2026.

Candidate
%
Votes
Image of Hallie Shoffner
Hallie Shoffner
 
78.6
 
85,856
Image of Ethan Dunbar
Ethan Dunbar Candidate Connection
 
21.4
 
23,397

Total votes: 109,253
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.

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Withdrawn or disqualified candidates

Republican primary election

Republican primary for U.S. Senate Arkansas

Incumbent Tom Cotton defeated Micah Ashby and Jeb Little in the Republican primary for U.S. Senate Arkansas on March 3, 2026.

Candidate
%
Votes
Image of Tom Cotton
Tom Cotton
 
82.1
 
187,969
Image of Micah Ashby
Micah Ashby
 
9.2
 
20,981
Image of Jeb Little
Jeb Little Candidate Connection
 
8.8
 
20,095

Total votes: 229,045
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.

Libertarian convention

Libertarian convention for U.S. Senate Arkansas

Jeff Wadlin advanced from the Libertarian convention for U.S. Senate Arkansas on February 22, 2026.

Candidate
Image of Jeff Wadlin
Jeff Wadlin (L)

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.

Candidate profiles

There are currently no candidate profiles created for this race. Candidate profiles will appear here as they are created. Encourage the candidates in this race to complete Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey so that their profile will appear here. You can ask candidates in this race to fill out the survey by clicking their names below:

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. Candidates are asked three required questions for this survey, but they may answer additional optional questions as well.

No candidate in this race has completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey. Ballotpedia is seeking 100 percent participation so voters can learn more about all the candidates on their ballots.

You can ask candidates in this race to fill out the survey by clicking their names below:


Campaign finance

Name Party Receipts* Disbursements** Cash on hand Date
Tom Cotton Republican Party $11,880,970 $8,607,793 $9,670,131 As of February 11, 2026
Ethan Dunbar Democratic Party $16,038 $17,411 $3,799 As of February 11, 2026
Hallie Shoffner Democratic Party $1,237,490 $733,520 $503,970 As of February 11, 2026
Micah Ashby Republican Party $41,162 $126 $754 As of February 11, 2026
Jeb Little Republican Party $92,532 $92,404 $127 As of March 31, 2026
Jeff Wadlin Libertarian 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: U.S. Senate election in Arkansas, 2026
Race trackerRace ratings
3/17/20263/10/20263/3/20262/24/2026
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. Senate 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. Senate candidates, 2026
State Office Party Signatures required Filing fee Filing deadline Source
Arkansas U.S. Senate Ballot-qualified party N/A Fixed by party 11/12/2025 Source
Arkansas U.S. Senate Unaffiliated 3% of qualified voters in the district, or 2,000, whichever is less N/A 5/1/2026 Source


Election history

The section below details election results for this state's U.S. Senate elections dating back to 2016.

2022

See also: United States Senate election in Arkansas, 2022

General election

General election for U.S. Senate Arkansas

Incumbent John Boozman defeated Natalie James, Kenneth Cates, Richard Gant, and James Garner in the general election for U.S. Senate Arkansas on November 8, 2022.

Candidate
%
Votes
Image of John Boozman
John Boozman (R)
 
65.7
 
592,437
Image of Natalie James
Natalie James (D) Candidate Connection
 
31.1
 
280,187
Image of Kenneth Cates
Kenneth Cates (L)
 
3.2
 
28,682
Image of Richard Gant
Richard Gant (Independent) (Write-in)
 
0.0
 
0
Image of James Garner
James Garner (Independent) (Write-in)
 
0.0
 
0

Total votes: 901,306
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 election

Democratic primary for U.S. Senate Arkansas

Natalie James defeated Dan Whitfield and Jack Foster in the Democratic primary for U.S. Senate Arkansas on May 24, 2022.

Candidate
%
Votes
Image of Natalie James
Natalie James Candidate Connection
 
54.1
 
49,722
Image of Dan Whitfield
Dan Whitfield Candidate Connection
 
30.8
 
28,319
Jack Foster
 
15.1
 
13,891

Total votes: 91,932
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

Republican primary for U.S. Senate Arkansas

Incumbent John Boozman defeated Jake Bequette, Jan Morgan, and Heath Loftis in the Republican primary for U.S. Senate Arkansas on May 24, 2022.

Candidate
%
Votes
Image of John Boozman
John Boozman
 
58.0
 
201,677
Image of Jake Bequette
Jake Bequette
 
20.7
 
71,809
Image of Jan Morgan
Jan Morgan
 
19.0
 
65,958
Image of Heath Loftis
Heath Loftis Candidate Connection
 
2.3
 
8,112

Total votes: 347,556
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

Libertarian convention

Libertarian convention for U.S. Senate Arkansas

Kenneth Cates advanced from the Libertarian convention for U.S. Senate Arkansas on February 20, 2022.

Candidate
Image of Kenneth Cates
Kenneth Cates (L)

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.

2020

See also: United States Senate election in Arkansas, 2020

General election

General election for U.S. Senate Arkansas

Incumbent Tom Cotton defeated Ricky Dale Harrington Jr. in the general election for U.S. Senate Arkansas on November 3, 2020.

Candidate
%
Votes
Image of Tom Cotton
Tom Cotton (R)
 
66.5
 
793,871
Image of Ricky Dale Harrington Jr.
Ricky Dale Harrington Jr. (L) Candidate Connection
 
33.5
 
399,390

Total votes: 1,193,261
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 election

Withdrawn or disqualified candidates

Republican primary election

The Republican primary election was canceled. Incumbent Tom Cotton advanced from the Republican primary for U.S. Senate Arkansas.

2016

See also: United States Senate election in Arkansas, 2016

Heading into the election, Ballotpedia rated Arkansas' U.S. Senate race as safely Republican. Incumbent John Boozman (R) defeated Conner Eldridge (D), Frank Gilbert (L) and write-in candidate Jason Tate in the general election on November 8, 2016. Boozman defeated Curtis Coleman in the Republican primary on March 1, 2016.[6][7][8]

U.S. Senate, Arkansas General Election, 2016
Party Candidate Vote % Votes
     Republican Green check mark transparent.pngJohn Boozman Incumbent 59.8% 661,984
     Democratic Connor Eldridge 36.2% 400,602
     Libertarian Frank Gilbert 4% 43,866
     N/A Write-in 0.1% 1,070
Total Votes 1,107,522
Source: Arkansas Secretary of State


U.S. Senate, Arkansas Republican Primary, 2016
Candidate Vote % Votes
Green check mark transparent.pngJohn Boozman Incumbent 76.5% 298,039
Curtis Coleman 23.5% 91,795
Total Votes 389,834
Source: Arkansas Secretary of State



Election analysis

Click the tabs below to view information about demographics, past elections, and partisan control of the state.

  • Presidential elections - Information about presidential elections in the state.
  • Statewide elections - Information about recent U.S. Senate and gubernatorial elections in the state.
  • State partisanship - The partisan makeup of the state's congressional delegation and state government.
  • Demographics - Information about the state's demographics and how they compare to the country as a whole.


See also: Presidential voting trends in Arkansas and The Cook Political Report's Partisan Voter Index

Cook PVI by congressional district

Cook Political Report's Partisan Voter Index for Arkansas, 2026
DistrictIncumbentPVI
Arkansas' 1stRick CrawfordR+23
Arkansas' 2ndFrench HillR+8
Arkansas' 3rdSteve WomackR+13
Arkansas' 4thBruce WestermanR+20

2024 presidential results by 2026 congressional district lines

2024 presidential results in congressional districts, Arkansas
DistrictKamala Harris Democratic PartyDonald Trump Republican Party
Arkansas' 1st26.0%72.0%
Arkansas' 2nd41.0%57.0%
Arkansas' 3rd36.0%61.0%
Arkansas' 4th29.0%69.0%
Source: The Downballot

2016-2024

How a state's counties vote in a presidential election and the size of those counties can provide additional insights into election outcomes at other levels of government including statewide and congressional races. Below, four categories are used to describe each county's voting pattern over the 2016, 2020, and 2024 presidential elections: Solid, Trending, Battleground, and New. Click [show] on the table below for examples:


Following the 2024 presidential election, 81.2% of Arkansans lived in one of the state's 67 Solid Republican counties, which voted for the Republican presidential candidate in every election from 2016 to 2024, and 18.4% lived in one of 7 Solid Democratic counties. Overall, Arkansas was Solid Republican, having voted for Donald Trump (R) in 2016, Donald Trump (R) in 2020, and Donald Trump (R) in 2024. Use the table below to view the total number of each type of county in Arkansas following the 2024 election as well as the overall percentage of the state population located in each county type.

Historical voting trends

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[9] R D R R R D D R R R R R R R

This section details the results of the five most recent U.S. Senate and gubernatorial elections held in the state.

U.S. Senate elections

See also: List of United States Senators from Arkansas

The table below details the vote in the five most recent U.S. Senate races in Arkansas.

U.S. Senate election results in Arkansas
RaceWinnerRunner up
202265.7%Republican Party31.1%Democratic Party
202066.5%Republican Party33.5%Libertarian Party
201659.7%Republican Party36.3%Democratic Party
201456.5%Republican Party39.4%Democratic Party
201058.0%Republican Party36.9%Democratic Party
Average61.335.4

Gubernatorial elections

See also: Governor of Arkansas

The table below details the vote in the five most recent gubernatorial elections in Arkansas.

Gubernatorial election results in Arkansas
RaceWinnerRunner up
202263.0%Republican Party35.2%Democratic Party
201865.3%Republican Party31.8%Democratic Party
201455.4%Republican Party41.5%Democratic Party
201064.4%Democratic Party33.6%Republican Party
200655.6%Democratic Party40.7%Republican Party
Average60.736.6
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 March 2026
     Democratic Party 6
     Republican Party 29
     Other 0
     Vacancies 0
Total 35

Arkansas House of Representatives

Party As of March 2026
     Democratic Party 20
     Republican Party 80
     Other 0
     Vacancies 0
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

The table below details demographic data in Arkansas and compares it to the broader United States as of 2023.

Demographic Data for Arkansas
Arkansas United States
Population 3,011,524 331,449,281
Land area (sq mi) 51,991 3,531,905
Race and ethnicity**
White 70.9% 63.4%
Black/African American 14.9% 12.4%
Asian 1.6% 5.8%
Native American 0.6% 0.9%
Pacific Islander 0.1% 0.4%
Other (single race) 3% 6.6%
Multiple 8.7% 10.7%
Hispanic/Latino 8.8% 19%
Education
High school graduation rate 88.6% 89.4%
College graduation rate 25.1% 35%
Income
Median household income $58,773 $78,538
Persons below poverty level 16% 12.4%
Source: population provided by U.S. Census Bureau, "Decennial Census" (2020). Other figures provided by U.S. Census Bureau, "American Community Survey" (5-year estimates 2018-2023).
**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.

See also

Arkansas 2026 primaries 2026 U.S. Congress elections
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Arkansas congressional delegation
Voting in Arkansas
Arkansas elections:
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Democratic primary battlegrounds
Republican primary battlegrounds
U.S. Senate Democratic primaries
U.S. Senate Republican primaries
U.S. House Democratic primaries
U.S. House Republican primaries
U.S. Congress elections
U.S. Senate elections
U.S. House elections
Special elections
Ballot access

External links

Footnotes

  1. Both independent U.S. senators — Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) and Angus King (I-Maine) — caucus with the Democrats.
  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. Arkansas Secretary of State, "Candidate Information," accessed November 10, 2015
  7. The New York Times, "Arkansas Primary Results," March 1, 2016
  8. The New York Times, "Election Results," accessed November 8, 2016
  9. American Independent Party


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