Garland County voters continue to favor Republicans
Democrats won one contested race in Garland County and failed to carry the county in a state or federal race for the third consecutive election cycle despite the party making gains nationwide in the Nov. 6 general election.
County election results certified Friday by the Garland County Election Commission show Esther Dixon was the only Democrat to win a contested race, defeating Eric Capaci, pastor of Gospel Light Baptist Church, 849-825 for the open District 3 justice of the peace seat.
Friday was the deadline for county election boards to certify results.
It was the third consecutive election cycle where District 3 was the only contested race won by a Democrat in Garland County. Denise Marion defeated Republicans Richard Myrick in 2014 and Blake Crawford in 2016 for the right to represent the Albert Pike and Airport road corridors on the Garland County Quorum Court.
The district’s eastern precincts include Greenwood Avenue and the area between Main Street and Central Avenue.
Marion was the only woman on the quorum court during the 2017-18 term. Dixon, the executive director of the Difference Makers of Hot Springs nonprofit advocacy group, will be the lone woman on the court when the 2019-20 term begins in January. She was one of five female candidates Democrats fielded for three open seats and two held by incumbents on the court.
No Democrats carried the county in a state or federal race for the third consecutive election cycle.
County turnout was up in raw numbers and percentage in comparison to the previous federal midterm election in 2014. The 32,080 voters who went to the polls accounted for 48.69 percent of the county’s 65,881 registered voters.
Voters cast 31,085 ballots in 2014, accounting for 48.32 percent of the 64,331 voters who were registered for the election.
Turnout was 41,173 during the 2016 general election, accounting for 63.10 percent of the 65,247 voters registered at that time.
Turnout for the Nov. 6 general election comprised 20,913 early ballots, 10,493 election day ballots, 645 absentee ballot and 29 provisional ballots. The election commission said 32 provisional ballots were not counted. None of the people who cast the uncounted ballots were present for Friday’s provisional ballot hearing.
A declaration announcing results from the four city director races on the ballot will be read at Tuesday’s Hot Springs Board of Directors meeting. Former Director Carroll Weatherford will be the only new director during the 2019-20 term. He won a plurality in the three-way race for the open District 4 seat.
The following are the county’s certified election results. The county circuit clerk and mayoral races in Fountain Lake and Lonsdale were uncontested but appeared on the ballot to determine the signature threshold needed for certification of citizen-led referendum and initiative petitions. U.S. Congress District 4
Bruce Westerman (Rep) 21,187 Hayden Catherine Shamel (Dem) 9,988 Tom Canada (Lib) 568
Write-in 26
Governor
Asa Hutchinson (Rep) 21,969
Jared K. Henderson (Dem) 8,865
Mark West (Lib) 933
Lieutenant governor
Tim Griffin (Rep) 21,617
Anthony Bland (Dem) 9,279
Frank Gilbert (Lib) 860
Attorney general
Leslie Rutledge (Rep) 20,680
Mike Lee (Dem) 10,211
Kerry Hicks (Lib) 859
Secretary of state
John Thurston (Rep) 20,374
Susan Inman (Dem) 10,308 Christopher Olson (Lib) 890
State treasurer
Dennis Milligan (Rep) 22,714
Ashley Ewald (Lib) 8,295
State auditor
Andrea Lea (Rep) 23,093
David E. Dinwiddie (Lib) 7,768
State land commissioner
Tommy Land (Rep) 19,544
Larry Williams (Dem) 11,105
T.J. Campbell (Lib) 984
Senate District 14
Bill Sample (Rep) 15,769
Michael Colgrove (Dem) 7,727
House District 21
Marcus E. Richmond (Rep) 471
Stele Wayne James (Dem) 129
House District 22
Mickey Gates (Rep) 5,636
Kevin Rogers (Dem) 3,170
House District 24
Bruce Cozart (Rep) 6,460
Kallen K. Peret (Dem) 2,913
J. Kent Percefull (Ind) 305
House District 26
Laurie Rushing (Rep) 1,325
Alan Bruce Hughes (Dem) 596 Supreme Court associate justice Position 3 Courtney Goodson 15,679
David Sterling 14,238
Circuit clerk
Jeannie Pike (Rep) 28,070
JP District 3
Esther M. Dixon (Dem) 849
Eric Capaci (Rep) 825
JP District 4
Jimmy Young (Rep) 1,685
Ray D. Stinson (Dem) 981
JP District 5
John Horner (Rep) 1,608
Nancy Hornstein (Dem) 892
JP District 9
Matt McKee (Rep) 1,973
Cortney McKee (Dem) 707
JP District 10
Jim Sorrells (Rep) 1,435
Anne M. Showalter (Dem) 546
JP District 11
Ronald T. Hunter Jr. (Rep) 2,435
Linda Lampman Ragsdale (Dem) 1,127 Fountain Lake mayor
Jack C. Fields 123
Hot Springs mayor
Pat McCabe 6,602
Brenda Brandenburg 4,110
Hot Springs director District 2
Elaine Jones 483
Billy Blackmon 276
LeDante Walker Sr. 167
Hot Springs director District 4
Carroll Weatherford 837
Dudley Webb III 730
Dan Bugg 648
Hot Springs director District 5
Karen Garcia 1,556
Rick Ramick 865
Lonsdale mayor
Steven M. Snellback 52
Mountain Pine mayor
Morgan Lee Wiles 107
Ed N. Jones 37
Chris Isom 33
James E. Long Sr. 14
Mountain Pine alderman Ward 3, Position 1 Dorothy Long Wilson 131
Rocky Carl 49
Mountain Pine alderman Ward 3, Position 2 Virginia Long 114
Jeremiah Long 58
Mountain Pine alderman Ward 4, Position 1 Brandon Heller 96
J.L. Long 88
NGCWD director, At Large Position 2 Dwayne Pratt 1,857
Donna Belote 1,204
Issue 1
Against 14,017
For 13,345
Issue 2
For 25,830
Against 5,599
Issue 3
For 22,487
Against 5,864
Issue 4
For 16,651
Against 13,684
Issue 5
For 21,778
Against 9,859