Little Rock School Board member Dianne Curry said Tuesday that she’s dropping her bid for the Democratic nomination for lieutenant governor in order to unite the party behind state Highway Commissioner John Burkhalter’s campaign for the job.
Curry announced her departure from the lieutenant governor’s race a day after former Lt. Gov. Bill Halter of North Little Rock said that he’s withdrawing from the Democratic gubernatorial race to avoid a divisive primary. That leaves former U.S. Rep. Mike Ross as the lone Democratic gubernatorial candidate.
Curry said she would consider seeking the 2nd Congressional District seat if the state Democratic Party asked her to run, but she said Halter also is considering running for the 2nd or 4th congressional seats. Halter spokesman Bud Jackson declined Tuesday to say whether Halter is weighing bids for either congressional seat.
Republican U.S. Rep. Tim Griffin is the state’s 2nd District congressman - a post he’s held since 2011.
Republican Tom Cotton is the state’s 4th District congressman, a job he’s held since January. Cotton is widely expected in political circles to challenge U.S. Sen. Mark Pryor, a Democrat, next year.
Arkansas Lt. Gov. Mark Darr, a Republican, said Tuesday through a spokesman that he’s planning to move back to his hometown of Mansfield in the 4th Congressional District.
Darr will announce in “the near future” whether he plans to run for re-election as lieutenant governor, for the 4th Congressional District seat or for the U.S. Senate, and he’ll respond to questions today about why he intends to move to Mansfield, said his spokesman Amber Pool.
State Rep. Charlie Collins of Fayetteville said he’s still considering running for the Republican nomination for lieutenant governor, but state Rep. Kelley Linck of Yellville said he has ruled out seeking the post. Also, state Rep. Andy Mayberry, R-Hensley, has said he’s considering campaigning for the job.
The lieutenant governor’s seat is often regarded as a part time job. The salary is $41,896 a year, about half the governor’s $86,890 salary.
The lieutenant governor job has two primary duties. One is to preside over the Senate when it’s in session (generally a few months each year). The lieutenant governor isn’t allowed to vote except to break ties, which rarely happen.
The other main duty is to act as governor for the few days when the governor is out of state or is unable to serve.
Curry, a retired state employee, and Burkhalter, president of Burkhalter Technologies, announced their respective bids for the Democratic nomination for lieutenant governor on the same day, June 11.
A few days later, Ross and Burkhalter said they planned to support each other in their Democratic primary campaigns. Ross said that if elected he would create a coalition of state agencies and nonprofits to be led by Burkhalter and aimed at creating jobs.
Burkhalter recently reported loaning his campaign $30,000 and spending $24,355 last quarter, leaving $5,648 in the bank on June 30. Curry said Tuesday that she’s spent nearly $500 on her campaign and has not done any fundraising.
Curry said Tuesday in a written statement that “the people united shall never be divided.”
“We need to focus our efforts on those in office who have squandered the will of the people for petty partisan political agendas,” she said.
There has been a lot of talk about business and the lieutenant governor’s office, but the main business of that office and state government is “the people’s business,” Curry said.
Burkhalter said in a written statement that he thanks Curry for her contribution to the race and for her public service.
“Now is a time when we must work together - Democrats, Republicans and people of all political backgrounds - to keep our state moving forward,” he said.
Arkansas, Pages 9 on 07/31/2013