State GOP disagreeing like Democrats did

By STEVE BRAWNER

The humorist Will Rogers once said, “I’m not a member of any organized political party. … I’m a Democrat.” He also said, “Democrats never agree on anything. That’s why they’re Democrats. If they agreed with each other, they’d be Republicans.”

Rogers might use similar language to describe Arkansas Republicans the past couple of months. They’re disagreeing with each other like Arkansas Democrats did when they were in power.

The state’s Republicans are split between some members of the party’s executive committee along with some elected officials on one side, and some rank and file members on the other.

The dispute started boiling over June 8, when the state party convention voted to close the party’s open primaries. 

That would mean only registered Republicans could vote in the elections that effectively elect many officeholders across much of the state. Those would include the governor, Congress members, state legislators and county judges. 

I write “effectively” because most of Arkansas is now solidly Republican except for the remaining areas that are still solidly Democrat. The November elections mostly are foregone conclusions. In most places, the real competition, if there is any, occurs in the March or May primary. That’s when a Republican faces another Republican, or more than one.

Arkansas has held open primaries since during its long era of Democratic dominance. Any registered voter has been able to vote in either party’s primary election.

Naturally, some Republican Party members don’t like that. Democrats and independents who vote in the Republican primary can influence the results, particularly in a close election.

Most Arkansas voters did not register as a member of either political party. As of last month, only 7.4% of the state’s voters, or 132,347, were registered Republicans, according to Secretary of State John Thurston’s office. Another 4.8% were Democrats, while .05% were in the miscellaneous category. The vast majority, 87.6%, or 1,549,863, registered as “optional.”

On June 8, rank and file delegates to the Republican Party’s state convention voted to close the party’s primary and allow only registered Republicans to vote. That happened after a closed primary supporter, Jennifer Lancaster, was elected for one day to chair the convention meeting. She defeated Joseph Wood, the party’s full-time chair who remains in that position.

Many party leaders don’t want closed primaries. Things are going just fine for Republicans as is. Party primaries are funded by all the taxpayers, some of whom might not appreciate being excluded. Party leaders are wary of what kind of candidates would win with only registered party members voting. Highly partisan candidates – and sometimes candidates with extreme views – would win more primary elections (and run in the first place). Some traditional, pragmatic conservatives might find it harder to compete.

On July 25, the party’s executive committee – the party leaders – voted to declare the convention’s actions “null and void,” according to a press release sent by the state Republican Party. Wood said in the release that the convention had violated party rules by adopting closed primaries without prior notice. As reported by the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette, about 60 party members who support closed primaries rallied at the party’s headquarters as the vote was occurring. 

Lancaster, an attorney, told the Democrat-Gazette that the executive committee doesn’t have the authority to override the convention delegates. 

It’s still not clear who can vote in the primary elections in 2026. The issue could wind up in court. Perhaps state legislators will pass a law clarifying exactly who can vote.

Two realities are at the dispute’s root. One is that Republicans across the country are split between two factions: those who support former President Trump, and those who are waiting for things to return to “normal.” Which is probably not going to exactly happen.

The other reality is that no era of good feelings lasts forever. Republicans were united and jubilant when they started taking over Arkansas in 2010 after a century and a half of Democratic dominance. Now they dominate Arkansas politics. With Democrats putting up limited opposition, the conflicts the past two months have been within. 

Arkansas is basically a one-party Republican state now, just as it was a one-party Democratic state before. To piggyback off Will Rogers’ comments, neither party has been completely organized or agreeable once in power. 

Thanks goodness for that, actually. Historically and worldwide, the record of organized, agreeable one-party governments really isn’t that great. 

Steve Brawner’s column is syndicated to 17 outlets in Arkansas. Email him at brawnersteve@mac.com.