Arkansas Democrats Celebrate Successful 2026 Candidate Filing Period

LITTLE ROCK一 Arkansas Democrats are celebrating the end of the 2026 candidate filing period. 75 state and federal Democratic candidates filed to run; 54 candidates for State House, 10 candidates for State Senate, 3 for Statewide Constitutional Office, 2 for U.S. Senate, and 6 for U.S. House. Scores of other Democrats filed for local offices in their counties.

Arkansas Democrats Chair Ret. Army Colonel Marcus Jones said:

"As we have said since 2022, Arkansas Democrats are laser-focused on breaking the legislative supermajority Republicans wield to hurt working people and rubber-stamp the Governor's agenda. The districts we are contesting reflect both that dedicated focus and the corrupted Republican legislative maps that have diminished competition and enabled a runaway legislature that's out of touch with the lives of regular Arkansans.

Arkansas Democrats are one of the only state Democratic parties in the South and across the country to add members to our legislative caucus in 2024. We will build on that progress in 2026."

At the federal level, Democrats are contesting all five races for the United States Congress. In the race for U.S. Senate, Democratic Mayor Ethan Dunbar of Lewisville and Hallie Shoffner of Little Rock are running in a competitive primary.

Arkansas Democrats Communications Director Micah Wallace said:

"Mayor Dunbar is engaged in a statewide tour to places Sen. Cotton couldn't even pick out on a map. Hallie Shoffner is breaking records for fundraising and getting national attention for aggressively tackling the farming crisis. Meanwhile, Tom Cotton considerably lags both Sarah Sanders and Donald Trump in popularity. This will be a race to watch."

Democrats are also challenging all four seats in the U.S. House of Representatives, with the nominees for two of the races to be decided in the March primary.

• In the First District: Dr. Terri Green (Paragould), a retired medical pathologist
• In the Second District: Dr. Chris Jones (Little Rock), the 2022 Democratic nominee for Governor, and Zack Huffman, an educator (Little Rock)
• In the Third District: Robb Ryerse, pastor (Springdale)
• In the Fourth District: Steven O'Donnell (Hot Springs), a Navy veteran and small business owner, and James 'Rus' Russell (Little Rock), a mental health professional

In the State Legislature, Democrats filed candidates in 53 Senate and House Districts around Arkansas.