Independents seek signatures leeway

Independent U.S. Senate candidate Dan Whitfield has written to Gov. Asa Hutchinson asking him to alter signature requirements for independent candidates who declared for office during the Nov. 4-11 filing period.

The Bella Vista candidate is joined by five independent candidates for state representative.

“This request is reasonable considering the impact of the COVID-19 (Novel Coronavirus), which has led to a Worldwide Pandemic, National, and State emergencies, in order to keep Arkansans health and safety the top priority,” the letter states.

It asks Hutchinson to issue an executive order waiving the signature requirements. Alternatively, Hutchinson could reduce the number of required signatures by 60%.

Since social distancing and other measures were adopted in mid-March, “the practice of collecting signatures has nearly ground to a halt,” it notes.

By May 1, independent candidates must submit signatures of at least 3% of the number of voters who participated in the 2018 gubernatorial election in the district for which they are running, but no more than 10,000 signatures. In the 2018 gubernatorial election, 891,509 people voted; 3% would be 26,745 for a statewide office, but the maximum required is 10,000.

Information for this article was contributed by Hunter Field of the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette.

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