LITTLE ROCK — Stone County voters will head back to the polls Aug. 2 to choose a Democratic nominee for sheriff after two candidates deadlocked in a runoff earlier this month.
Gov. Mike Beebe issued a proclamation Wednesday afternoon calling for the election to fill the Democratic Party vacancy created by the tie.
Republican candidate for sheriff William Rush Aiken was unopposed for his party’s nomination.
Incumbent Sheriff Todd Hudspeth and challenger Lance Bonds each received 1,383 votes during the June 8 runoff.
State law does not provide procedures for breaking tiedvotes in primary elections.
Beebe’s proclamation ends speculation about how the party would choose a candidate, said Stone County Election Commission member Betty Allred.
“We’re really pleased,” Allred said. “We’re getting ready for this election.”
Hudspeth did not immediately return telephone messages Wednesday.
Bonds said, “I think that’s the right thing to do for me and Todd and the voters.”
“I’m glad to hear [of] another election. It’s been a long three months,” he said.
On June 8, voters cast their ballots in the Democratic primary runoff race for sheriff, resulting in the tie.
A recount later that week first showed that Hudspethwon by five votes, but Allred inadvertently failed to count votes from a second precinct box. When the correction was made and the votes tallied again, election commissioners found that the two candidates remained tied.
Beebe’s proclamation allows candidates to file for the Democratic nomination from Friday to July 2.
Allred and election commission Chairman B o b Turner said they don’t expect anyone other than Bonds and Hudspeth to file in the race.
“We’re preparing for a record turnout,” Allred said. “I think everybody in the county will want to vote in this one.” Information for this article was contributed by Julie Stewart, special to the Democrat-Gazette.
Arkansas, Pages 10 on 06/24/2010