Bryant announces plan for state Senate in District 32

ROGERS — State Rep. Joshua Bryant, R-Rogers, will run for the state Senate in proposed Senate District 32, he announced Thursday.

“When President Biden issued his unconstitutional executive order mandating vaccines for private businesses with 100 employees or more, I filed legislation to protect Arkansans from having to choose between their conscience and their livelihood,” Bryant said in a statement. “Though the Legislature did not take all the steps I thought were necessary to counter Biden’s federal government overreach, we did pass my bill to require exemptions from the federal mandate.”

Legislative districts are being redrawn. The state Board of Apportionment redraws legislative district boundaries every 10 years, after each U.S. census.

The board consists of the sitting governor, attorney general and secretary of state. The board set its next meeting for Nov. 29 to consider final approval of the maps after a 30-day public comment period. The board unveiled the proposed map Oct. 29.

Under the proposed maps, Bryant would be running in Senate District 32, which would cover eastern Benton County. Sen. Cecile Bledsoe, R-Rogers, is not running for reelection due to the state constitution’s limits on legislative terms.

She ranks first in seniority, Senate records show.

Bryant’s decision for a Senate bid leaves proposed House District 7 in eastern Benton County without an incumbent.

Bryant, 43, was a threeterm Benton County justice of the peace who is still in his first term in the state House, elected to House District 96 with the endorsement of his predecessor, then-Rep. Grant Hodges, R-Rogers. Bryant is a U.S. Marine Corps veteran. He is a former partner in a home building company.

State senators serve a fouryear term and receive a base salary of $42,428. They also receive per diem and reimbursement for expenses.