LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (AP) — Early voting began Tuesday for Arkansas’ March 3 primary and nonpartisan judicial election, with the solidly Republican state drawing interest among Democratic presidential hopefuls.
Secretary of State John Thurston has not predicted how many of the state’s more than 1.7 million registered voters will cast a ballot in this year’s primary. In the 2018 primary, 19% of voters cast a ballot, while turnout was 38% in the 2016 primary.
Aside from the Democratic and Republican presidential primaries, the only contested statewide race on the ballot is the nonpartisan contest for an open seat on the state Supreme Court. Pulaski County Circuit Judge Chip Welch and Barbara Webb, chief administrative law judge for the state Workers’ Compensation Commission, are running for the seat being vacated by retiring Justice Jo Hart.
Polls will be open between 8 a.m. and 6 p.m. Monday through Friday and from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Saturday. Early voting ends at 5 p.m. on March 2, the day before the primary.
