United States Senate election in Arkansas, 2020
- Election date: Nov. 3
- Registration deadline(s): Oct. 5
- Online registration: No
- Same-day registration: No
- Recount laws
- Early voting starts: Oct. 19
- Absentee/mail voting deadline(s): Nov. 3 (received)
- Processing, counting, and challenging absentee/mail-in ballots
- Voter ID: Photo ID
- Poll times: 7:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m.
2022 →
← 2016
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| U.S. Senate, Arkansas |
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 |
| Democratic primary Republican primary General election |
| Election details |
| Filing deadline: November 11, 2019 |
| Primary: March 3, 2020 Primary runoff: March 31, 2020 General: November 3, 2020 Pre-election incumbent: Tom Cotton (Republican) |
| How to vote |
| Poll times: 7:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. Voting in Arkansas |
| Race ratings |
Inside Elections: Solid Republican Sabato's Crystal Ball: Safe Republican |
| Ballotpedia analysis |
| U.S. Senate battlegrounds U.S. House battlegrounds Federal and state primary competitiveness Ballotpedia's Election Analysis Hub, 2020 |
| See also |
U.S. Senate • 1st • 2nd • 3rd • 4th Arkansas elections, 2020 U.S. Congress elections, 2020 U.S. Senate elections, 2020 U.S. House elections, 2020 |
Voters in Arkansas elected one member to the U.S. Senate in the election on November 3, 2020.
Incumbent Tom Cotton won election in the general election for U.S. Senate Arkansas.
| Candidate filing deadline | Primary election | General election |
|---|---|---|
The election filled the Class II Senate seat held by Tom Cotton (R). Cotton was first elected in 2014.
Election procedure changes in 2020
Ballotpedia provided comprehensive coverage of how election dates and procedures changed in 2020. While the majority of changes occurred as a result of the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, some changes occurred for other reasons.
Arkansas modified its absentee/mail-in voting procedures for the November 3, 2020, general election as follows:
- Absentee/mail-in voting: Voters in the general election could cite concerns over COVID-19 as a valid excuse for voting absentee.
For a full timeline about election modifications made in response to the COVID-19 outbreak, click here.
Candidates and election results
General election
General election for U.S. Senate Arkansas
Incumbent Tom Cotton defeated Ricky Dale Harrington Jr. in the general election for U.S. Senate Arkansas on November 3, 2020.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ |  | Tom Cotton (R) | 66.5 | 793,871 |
 | Ricky Dale Harrington Jr. (L)  | 33.5 | 399,390 | |
| Total votes: 1,193,261 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
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Withdrawn or disqualified candidates
- Dan Whitfield (Independent)
Democratic primary election
Withdrawn or disqualified candidates
- Joshua Mahony (D)
Republican primary election
The Republican primary election was canceled. Incumbent Tom Cotton advanced from the Republican primary for U.S. Senate Arkansas.
Ballot access requirements
The table below details filing requirements for U.S. Senate candidates in Arkansas in the 2020 election cycle. For additional information on candidate ballot access requirements in Arkansas, click here.
| Filing requirements for U.S. Senate candidates, 2020 | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| State | Office | Party | Signatures required | Signature formula | Filing fee | Filing fee formula | Filing deadline | Source |
| Arkansas | U.S. Senate | Democratic | N/A | N/A | $12,000.00 | Fixed number | 11/12/2019 | Source |
| Arkansas | U.S. Senate | Republican | N/A | N/A | $20,000.00 | Fixed number | 11/12/2019 | Source |
| Arkansas | U.S. Senate | Unaffiliated | 10,000 | 3% of total votes cast for governor in the last election, not to exceed 10,000 | N/A | N/A | 5/1/2020 | Source |
Campaign finance
This section contains campaign finance figures from the Federal Election Commission covering all candidate fundraising and spending in this election.[1] It does not include information on fundraising before the current campaign cycle or on spending by satellite groups. The numbers in this section are updated as candidates file new campaign finance reports. Candidates for Congress are required to file financial reports on a quarterly basis, as well as two weeks before any primary, runoff, or general election in which they will be on the ballot and upon the termination of any campaign committees.[2]
| Name | Party | Receipts* | Disbursements** | Cash on hand | Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tom Cotton | Republican Party | $12,990,412 | $6,846,753 | $6,396,953 | As of December 31, 2020 |
| Ricky Dale Harrington Jr. | Libertarian Party | $79,564 | $64,037 | $15,527 | As of November 23, 2020 |
|
Source: Federal Elections Commission, "Campaign finance data," 2020. This product uses the openFEC API but is not endorsed or certified by the Federal Election Commission (FEC).
* According to the FEC, "Receipts are anything of value (money, goods, services or property) received by a political committee." |
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Race ratings
- See also: Race rating definitions and methods
Ballotpedia provides race ratings from four outlets: The Cook Political Report, Inside Elections, Sabato's Crystal Ball, and DDHQ/The Hill. Each race rating indicates if one party is perceived to have an advantage in the race and, if so, the degree of advantage:
- Safe and Solid ratings indicate that one party has a clear edge and the race is not competitive.
- Likely ratings indicate that one party has a clear edge, but an upset is possible.
- Lean ratings indicate that one party has a small edge, but the race is competitive.[3]
- Toss-up ratings indicate that neither party has an advantage.
Race ratings are informed by a number of factors, including polling, candidate quality, and election result history in the race's district or state.[4][5][6]
| Race ratings: U.S. Senate election in Arkansas, 2020 | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Race tracker | Race ratings | ||||||||
| November 3, 2020 | October 27, 2020 | October 20, 2020 | October 13, 2020 | ||||||
| The Cook Political Report | Solid Republican | Solid Republican | Solid Republican | Solid Republican | |||||
| Inside Elections with Nathan L. Gonzales | Solid Republican | Solid Republican | Solid Republican | Solid Republican | |||||
| Larry J. Sabato's Crystal Ball | Safe Republican | Safe Republican | Safe Republican | Safe Republican | |||||
| Note: Ballotpedia updates external race ratings every week throughout the election season. | |||||||||
Election history
2016
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican |  John Boozman Incumbent |
59.8% | 661,984 | |
| Democratic | Connor Eldridge | 36.2% | 400,602 | |
| Libertarian | Frank Gilbert | 4% | 43,866 | |
| N/A | Write-in | 0.1% | 1,070 | |
| Total Votes | 1,107,522 | |||
| Source: Arkansas Secretary of State | ||||
2014
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Tom Cotton |
56.5% | 478,819 | |
| Democratic | Mark Pryor Incumbent | 39.5% | 334,174 | |
| Libertarian | Nathan LaFrance | 2% | 17,210 | |
| Green | Mark Swaney | 2% | 16,797 | |
| Total Votes | 847,000 | |||
| Source: Arkansas Secretary of State | ||||
2010
On November 2, 2010, John Boozman won election to the United States Senate. He defeated incumbent Blanche L. Lincoln (D), Trevor Drown (I) and John Laney Gray, III (G) in the general election.[7]
| U.S. Senate, Arkansas General Election, 2010 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
| Republican | John Boozman |
57.9% | 451,618 | |
| Democratic | Blanche L. Lincoln incumbent | 37% | 288,156 | |
| Independent | Trevor Drown | 3.2% | 25,234 | |
| Green | John Laney Gray, III | 1.9% | 14,430 | |
| Total Votes | 779,438 | |||
See also
- United States House of Representatives elections in Arkansas, 2020
- United States Senate elections, 2020
Footnotes
- ↑ Fundraising by primary candidates can be found on the race's respective primary election page. Fundraising by general election candidates can be found on the race's general election page.
- ↑ Federal Election Commission, "2022 Quarterly Reports," accessed March 2, 2022
- ↑ Inside Elections also uses Tilt ratings to indicate an even smaller advantage and greater competitiveness.
- ↑ Amee LaTour, "Email correspondence with Nathan Gonzalez," April 19, 2018
- ↑ Amee LaTour, "Email correspondence with Kyle Kondik," April 19, 2018
- ↑ Amee LaTour, "Email correspondence with Charlie Cook," April 22, 2018
- ↑ U.S. Congress House Clerk, "Statistics of the Congressional Election of November 2, 2010," accessed March 28, 2013
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