Republicans running for Arkansas secretary of state focus on election security, voter turnout

State Sen. Kim Hammer, Army veteran Bryan Norris, and Miller County Judge Cathy Hardin Harrison

By Andrew DeMillo, Arkansas Advocate

Republicans seeking the party’s nomination for Arkansas secretary of state say they want to ensure election security and find ways to boost lagging voter turnout.

State Sen. Kim Hammer, Miller County Judge Cathy Hardin Harrison, and Army veteran Bryan Norris are running in the March 3 primary. Whoever wins the nomination will face Democrat Kelly Grappe. If no one wins the majority needed to claim the nomination outright, the top two candidates will advance to a March 31 runoff.

The candidates are running to replace Secretary of State Cole Jester, who can’t seek reelection because he was appointed to the post. Jester is running against Christian Olson in the GOP primary for land commissioner.

The secretary of state hopefuls are running for the state’s top election position at a time that President Donald Trump and Republicans nationally are pushing for new voting restrictions. A measure moving through Congress would require the public to produce a birth certificate or passport in most cases to register to vote.

Hammer has served in the state Legislature since 2011 and is touting his experience.

He’s sponsored several measures restricting the initiative process, including one requiring canvassers to see voters’ ID before they sign a petition and another to read the ballot title to potential signers or see them read it. A federal judge has blocked the state from enforcing the laws against groups that challenged their constitutionality.

“I’ve got 16 years’ experience and throughout that 16 years a lot of the legislation I have passed or supported aligns with the three primary areas of the secretary of state,” Hammer told the Arkansas Advocate. “I don’t know it all but I’ve got a pretty good working knowledge and I’ll be able to go into the office not behind the learning curve.”

Norris said he’s running because he’s concerned about Arkansas being at the bottom of many rankings, and said he wants to reform the secretary of state’s office. That includes even taking his office door off its hinges and putting it in storage, he said.

“If you want to know what’s happening inside my office, just sit in the lobby and you’ll hear everything,” he told the Advocate.

Harrison did not respond to requests for an interview.

“I want all Arkansans to have access to secure elections, a safe and secure state Capitol and quality employment,” she said on her campaign site. “I want to attract quality businesses to Arkansas so that more Arkansans can have high quality jobs and opportunities.”

Both Hammer and Norris said they wanted to find ways to improve Arkansas voter turnout, which consistently has ranked at the bottom or near the bottom of the country in recent years.

Hammer said he would like to set up “generational teams” to engage with different age groups on the importance of voting and would like to allow high school students to work at polling locations to fulfill their community service requirements under the LEARNS Act.

“We have to be creative because doing the same-old, same-old is not working,” Hammer said.

Norris said he thinks voter turnout has been low because voters don’t have confidence in the election system. He said he thinks changes he’d push for as secretary of state include prohibiting foreign-made components in voting machines and requiring an audit of state election systems.

“We need to instill trust into our election process to get that confidence and get people to come back,” he said.

Norris said he also favors doing away with early voting, but that he would also advocate for making Election Day a state holiday. He’d also favor giving poll workers similar job protections that are given to workers in Arkansas called up for jury duty.

Hammer in 2021 sponsored legislation that failed in the House that would have eliminated early voting on the last Monday before Election Day. But Hammer said he would not be in favor of eliminating early voting altogether.

Norris is also challenging a 2021 law that was sponsored by Hammer that prohibits people from being within 100 feet of a polling place unless they’re entering or exiting to vote. Norris’ lawsuit seeks to prevent the law from being used to prohibit exit polling, and a federal judge is scheduled to hold a hearing on it this week.

All three candidates said they want to improve the grounds around the Capitol and its security.

Hammer said he wants to examine underused spaces in the area to open up more room for Capitol parking for the public.

“That needs to be at the top of the priority list,” Hammer said.

Norris said he wants to find ways to open up more parking and access around the Capitol grounds, and said that includes asking lawmakers if they’re willing to give up parking spots.

“I want the Capitol to be a destination, not just a spot,” Norris said.

All images via the Arkansas Secretary of State.

The Arkansas Advocate is a nonprofit, nonpartisan news organization dedicated to tough, fair daily reporting and investigative journalism that holds public officials accountable and focuses on the relationship between the lives of Arkansans and public policy.