Election filings start this week for city offices

Virus changes campaigning for mayoral, council positions

BENTONVILLE — Shaking hands and kissing babies are definitely out. Knocking on doors is iffy and a fish fry might be awkward with social distancing requirements.

Campaigning for municipal office will be different this election season because of covid-19.

Municipal filings begin at noon Wednesday and end at noon Aug. 5. The nonpartisan election is Nov. 3.

There will be mayors’ races in Fayetteville, Rogers and Springdale and dozens of city council seats and other elected offices on the ballot. The incumbent mayors in those three cities — Lioneld Jordan, Greg Hines and Doug Sprouse, respectively — said they will seek reelection.

Chris Sooter, Bentonville Ward 2, Position 2 alderman, will vie for a 10th term on the City Council. He put a plan in place early because of covid-19.

He contacted people by text or email first and asked if they would sign his petition to file for reelection. Once he heard back, he wore a mask and kept social distance outdoors while they signed.

“I would expect that there will be more campaigning by direct phone, text or email

with residents as well as continued use of social media,” Sooter said. “There may also be alternate ways to host forums such as using Zoom or another video conferencing technology. As with every aspect of our daily lives, changing the way things are done will be inevitable.”

The Rogers-Lowell Area Chamber of Commerce’s Ready, Set, Run! program covered some ways to adapt to campaigning during the pandemic, said Jon Moran, chamber senior vice president of government affairs.

The program is the chamber’s effort to provide information for individuals running for, or considering running for public office. The program started in 2007 and has been held in the odd numbered years before an election year. This year’s event was the first year it was held virtually and in an election year and was tailored specifically for people considering running for local office, Moran said.

“Every traditional campaign function from fundraising, messaging, canvassing to engaging with voters has been affected,” he said. “Campaigns on every level are having to adapt to this situation. We saw a preview of

how elections this fall could go with the legislative runoff in Benton County back in March.

All canvassing was halted, which forced campaigns to adopt a more strategic focus on social media to reach voters, and encourage supporters to vote by absentee if they were concerned about voting in person.”

The possible loss of candidate forums could affect a newcomer more than an incumbent, said Michael McCranie, the campaign manager for Bentonville Mayor Stephanie Orman in 2018.

“Forums are where unknown candidates can show that they have what it takes to unseat an incumbent,” he said. “It’s where the public can come together and in one place and one time to compare and contrast the incumbent and their ideology with the challenger and their ideology. Forums, and how campaigns follow them up, can often be the start of real momentum for new candidates.”

All eight City Council

seats in Bentonville are up for election this year, according to information provided by the Benton County Clerk’s Office.

Dylan Shaddox has announced he will run for the Bentonville Ward 1, Position 2 spot held by Chad Goss, who said he plans to run for reelection. Shaddox said campaigning in the covid-19 era will be a challenge.

“I still plan on going door to door, but being very cautious and respect residents on how they feel about candidates coming to their door,” he said. “I will be wearing a mask and keeping my distance while talking to them. My volunteers will follow what I do also.”

He also plans to have social media presence using Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

Social media broadly and Facebook specifically are going to be critical to all campaigns in the fall and in the future, McCranie said. It’s where the largest groups of people communicate in one place. This was true before the pandemic, but it’s gone from important to critical, he said.

Sprouse, in office for 12 years in Springdale, said campaigning during a pandemic will be different.

“There probably won’t be a lot of large events, and that will be the most impactful. It’s

going to be more difficult to get before people. It will be a different vibe for sure,” he said.

Steve Guthrie, running for reelection for Pea Ridge City Council, Ward 2 Position 1, said he is handling his campaign just as he has in the past because “most people I’m dealing with aren’t real concerned about covid.”

Benton and Washington counties will prepare for more absentee ballot requests for the November general election because of covid-19 concerns, officials said. Some states have mail-in ballots, meaning every registered voter in a county or state receives a ballot. Arkansas uses an absentee ballot system.

A voter has to request an absentee ballot application be sent to him by contacting the county clerk in the county where he is registered to vote, according to the Arkansas Secretary of State website.

Voters may download an absentee ballot application from the Secretary of State website.

The application can also be downloaded from the Benton and Washington county websites.

The application can be submitted by fax, email, in person or by mail, said Jennifer Price with the Washington County Election Commission.

Secretary of State John Thurston said June 25 state

law provides sufficient latitude for voters concerned about the coronavirus to request an absentee ballot for the November general election.

The law allows a voter to request a ballot if he will be “unavoidably absent from his or her voting place on the day of the election,” among other reasons that can be given.

Thurston said voters can immediately begin requesting absentee ballots from his

office or their local county clerks. The deadline to request an absentee ballot by mail or fax is Oct. 27, although a voter can pick up an absentee ballot in person until Nov. 2, the day before the election.

All absentee ballots must be returned by 7 p.m. on election day, to be counted, Thurston said.

Mike Jones may be reached by email at mjones@nwadg.com. Annette Beard contributed to this report.