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Arkansas held an election for governor on November 6, 2018. The candidate filing deadline was March 1, 2018.
Incumbent Asa Hutchinson (R) defeated challengers Jared Henderson (D) and Mark West (L), receiving 65.5 percent of the vote to Henderson's 31.6 percent and West's 2.9 percent. Hutchinson's 65.5 percent share of the vote was greater than any Republican candidate for governor in state history, surpassing the 59.77 percent record set by Mike Huckabee (R) in 1998.
| SETTING THE STAGE | |
Arkansas was one of 36 states that held an election for governor in 2018. Democrats gained seven previously Republican-held seats, and Republicans gained one previously independent-held seat. Heading into the 2018 elections, there were 16 Democratic governors, 33 Republican governors, and one independent governor. In 2018, 26 of the 33 states with a Republican governor held a gubernatorial election, while nine out of the 16 states with a Democratic governor held a gubernatorial election. Seventeen of the 36 seats up for election were open seats (four Democratic, 12 Republican, and one independent), meaning that the sitting governor was not seeking re-election.
General election
All candidates
Governor of Arkansas: Four-way race
| Poll | Asa Hutchinson (R) | Mike Ross (D) | Joshua Drake (G) | Frank Gilbert (L) | Undecided | Margin of error | Sample size |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Opinion Research Associates, Inc. October 25-26, 2014 | 42% | 44% | 1% | 2% | 11% | +/-5 | 401 |
| NBC News/Marist October 24, 2014 | 47% | 44% | 2% | 2% | 5% | +/-3.9 | 621 |
| Talk Business & Politics/Hendrix College October 15-16, 2014 | 49% | 41% | 2% | 2.5% | 5.5% | +/-2.2 | 2,075 |
| Suffolk/USA Today September 20-23, 2014 | 43% | 41% | 2% | 3% | 11% | +/-4.4 | 500 |
| Public Policy Polling September 18-21, 2014 | 44% | 38% | 2% | 3% | 13% | +/-2.6 | 1,453 |
| Gravis Marketing September 8-11, 2014 | 46% | 42% | 0% | 2% | 10% | +/-4.0 | 902 |
| Southern Progress Poll September 7-9, 2014 | 44% | 44% | 2% | 2% | 8% | +/-3.5 | 600 |
| AVERAGES | 45% | 42% | 1.57% | 2.36% | 9.07% | +/-3.66 | 936 |
**Due to the nature of the comparison, a placeholder figure of 0% is assigned to candidates not included in any given match-up round
Hutchinson vs. Ross (April 2014 - present)
Governor of Arkansas: Hutchinson vs. Ross
| Poll | Asa Hutchinson (R) | Mike Ross (D) | Don't know | Margin of error | Sample size |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| University of Arkansas October 21-27, 2014 | 50% | 39% | 11% | +/-3.6 | 747 |
| New York Times/CBS News/YouGov September 20-October 1, 2014 | 49% | 38% | 13% | +/-2 | 1,991 |
| Public Policy Poll August 1-3, 2014 | 43% | 38% | 12% | +/-3 | 1,066 |
| Rasmussen Reports May 27-28, 2014 | 48% | 41% | 6% | +/-4 | 750 |
| NBC/Marist April 30-May 4, 2014 | 49% | 42% | 7% | +/-2.9 | 876 |
| AVERAGES | 47.8% | 39.6% | 9.8% | +/-3.1 | 1,086 |
Hutchinson vs. Ross (February 2014 - April 2014)
Governor of Arkansas: Hutchinson vs. Ross
| Poll | Asa Hutchinson (R) | Mike Ross (D) | Don't know | Margin of error | Sample size |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Public Policy Poll April 25-27, 2014 | 46% | 38% | 16% | +/-3.4 | 840 |
| New York Times/Kaiser Family Foundation Poll April 8-15, 2014 | 41% | 40% | 16% | +/-4.0 | 857 |
| Opinion Research Associates April 1-8, 2014 | 39% | 45% | 17% | +/-5.0 | 400 |
| Hendrix College/Talk Business April 3-4, 2014 | 43% | 44% | 8% | +/-3.0 | 1,068 |
| OnMessage March 11-13, 2014 | 44% | 36% | 15% | +/-4.0 | 600 |
| Impact February 10, 2014 | 42% | 42% | 17% | +/-2.83 | 1,202 |
| Rasmussen Reports February 4-5, 2014 | 41% | 44% | 12% | +/-4.5 | 500 |
| Public Policy Polling/Americans United for Change December 13-15, 2013 | 44% | 43% | 14% | +/-3.1 | 1,004 |
| Talk Business/Hendrix College Poll October 8, 2013 | 41% | 37% | 22% | +/-4.0 | 603 |
| Talk Business/Hendrix College February 20, 2013 | 43% | 38% | 19% | +/-3.8 | 675 |
| AVERAGES | 42.4% | 40.7% | 15.6% | +/-3.76 | 774.9 |
Race ratings: Arkansas gubernatorial election, 2018
| Race tracker | Race ratings | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| November 5, 2018 | October 30, 2018 | October 23, 2018 | October 16, 2018 | |
| 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 |
This section provides an overview of federal and state elections in Arkansas from 2000 to 2016. All data comes from the Arkansas Secretary of State.
This chart shows the results of the presidential election in Arkansas every year from 2000 to 2016.
Election results (President of the United States), Arkansas 2000-2016
| Year | First-place candidate | First-place candidate votes (%) | Second-place candidate | Second-place candidate votes (%) | Margin of victory (%) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 |  Donald Trump |
60.6% |  Hillary Clinton |
33.7% | 26.9% |
| 2012 | Mitt Romney |
60.6% | Barack Obama |
36.9% | 23.7% |
| 2008 | John McCain |
58.7% | Barack Obama |
38.9% | 19.8% |
| 2004 | George W. Bush |
54.3% | John Kerry |
44.6% | 9.7% |
| 2000 | George W. Bush |
51.3% | Al Gore |
45.9% | 5.4% |
This chart shows the results of U.S. Senate races in Arkansas from 2000 to 2016. Every state has two Senate seats, and each seat goes up for election every six years. The terms of the seats are staggered so that roughly one-third of the seats are up every two years.
Election results (U.S. Senator), Arkansas 2000-2016
| Year | First-place candidate | First-place candidate votes (%) | Second-place candidate | Second-place candidate votes (%) | Margin of victory (%) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | John Boozman |
59.8% | Conner Eldridge |
36.2% | 23.6% |
| 2014 | Tom Cotton |
56.5% | Mark Pryor |
39.4% | 22.9% |
| 2010 | John Boozman |
57.9% | Blanche Lincoln |
37.0% | 1.6% |
| 2008 | Mark Pryor |
79.5% |  |
20.5% | 59.0% |
| 2004 | Blanche Lincoln |
55.9% | Jim Holt |
44.1% | 11.8% |
| 2002 | Mark Pryor |
53.9% | Tim Hutchinson |
46.1% | 7.8% |
This chart shows the results of the four gubernatorial elections held between 2000 and 2016. Gubernatorial elections are held every four years in Arkansas.
Election results (Governor), Arkansas 2000-2016
| Year | First-place candidate | First-place candidate votes (%) | Second-place candidate | Second-place candidate votes (%) | Margin of victory (%) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2014 | Asa Hutchinson |
55.4% | Mike Ross |
46.3% | 9.1% |
| 2010 | Mike Beebe |
64.4% | Jim Keet |
33.6% | 30.8% |
| 2006 | Mike Beebe |
55.6% | Asa Hutchinson |
40.7% | 14.9% |
| 2002 | Mike Huckabee |
53.0% | Jimmie Lou Fisher |
46.9% | 6.1% |
This chart shows the number of Democrats and Republicans who were elected to represent Arkansas in the U.S. House from 2000 to 2016. Elections for U.S. House seats are held every two years.
Congressional delegation, Arkansas 2000-2016
| Year | Republicans | Republicans (%) | Democrats | Democrats (%) | Balance of power |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 4 |
100% | 0 |
0% | R+4 |
| 2014 | 4 |
100% | 0 |
0% | R+4 |
| 2012 | 4 |
100% | 0 |
0% | R+4 |
| 2010 | 3 |
75% | 1 |
25% | R+3 |
| 2008 | 1 |
25% | 3 |
75% | D+3 |
| 2006 | 1 |
25% | 3 |
75% | D+3 |
| 2004 | 1 |
25% | 3 |
75% | D+3 |
| 2002 | 1 |
25% | 3 |
75% | D+3 |
| 2000 | 1 |
25% | 3 |
75% | D+3 |
A state government trifecta occurs when one party controls both chambers of the state legislature and the governor's office.
Arkansas Party Control: 1992-2019
11 years of Democratic trifectas • Five years of Republican trifectas
| Year | 92 | 93 | 94 | 95 | 96 | 97 | 98 | 99 | 00 | 01 | 02 | 03 | 04 | 05 | 06 | 07 | 08 | 09 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Governor | D | D | D | D | D | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | R | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | R | R | R | R | R |
| Senate | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | R | R | R | R | R | R | R |
| House | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | D | R | R | R | R | R | R | R |
Demographic data for Arkansas
| Arkansas | U.S. | |
|---|---|---|
| Total population: | 2,977,853 | 316,515,021 |
| Land area (sq mi): | 52,035 | 3,531,905 |
| Gender | ||
| Female: | 50.9% | 50.8% |
| Race and ethnicity** | ||
| White: | 78% | 73.6% |
| Black/African American: | 15.5% | 12.6% |
| Asian: | 1.4% | 5.1% |
| Native American: | 0.6% | 0.8% |
| Pacific Islander: | 0.2% | 0.2% |
| Two or more: | 2.1% | 3% |
| Hispanic/Latino: | 6.9% | 17.1% |
| Education | ||
| High school graduation rate: | 84.8% | 86.7% |
| College graduation rate: | 21.1% | 29.8% |
| Income | ||
| Median household income: | $41,371 | $53,889 |
| Persons below poverty level: | 22.9% | 11.3% |
| Source: U.S. Census Bureau, "American Community Survey" (5-year estimates 2010-2015) for more information on the 2020 census and here for more on its impact on the redistricting process in Arkansas. | ||
As of July 2016, Arkansas' three largest cities were Little Rock (pop. est. 198,606), Ft. Smith (pop. est. 88,037), and Fayetteville (pop. est. 85,257).
