Arkansas Senate majority bans minority party from vice-chair seats on committees

Tess Vrbin

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Arkansas Advocate

Senate Minority Leader Greg Leding, D-Fayetteville, and Sen. Stephanie Flowers, D-Pine Bluff listen during an organizational meeting in the Arkansas Senate on Thursday, November 7, 2024.

“It’s really just a small-minded way to start each legislative session,” Tucker said about the two rules in an interview.

He and Sen. Stephanie Flowers of Pine Bluff were the only Democrats on the Senate Judiciary and State Agencies committees during the 2023-2024 term. Tucker was vice chair of the State Agencies Committee while Flowers was vice chair of the Judiciary Committee.

The three Republicans that voted against the new rule were Sens. Jimmy Hickey of Texarkana, Missy Irvin of Mountain View and Bryan King of Green Forest. Hickey said in an interview that he didn’t want more “divisiveness” in the Senate during what he saw as “a time of rebuilding across the country.”

Irvin and Sen. Jonathan Dismang, R-Searcy, were first elected to the Senate when Republicans were the minority party, and both served as committee chairs at the time. Irvin said she voted against the rule because she “wanted to be consistent,” and Dismang said he did not vote on the rule because he saw it as unnecessary.

Sen. Ron Caldwell, R-Wynne, also did not vote on the rule.

“There will be a moment in time where we will need the vote of the minority party, and I was trying to treat them fairly,” Caldwell said.

Scott will be the only new senator in the chamber in January after she ran unopposed to succeed Linda Chesterfield of Little Rock, who retired. Additionally, Sen. Fred Love of Mabelvale will succeed Chesterfield as the Senate Minority Whip.

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Publish date : 2024-11-08 03:11:00

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