Saline clerk Milligan is GOP nominee for treasurer

Saline County Circuit Clerk Dennis Milligan
Saline County Circuit Clerk Dennis Milligan

A former head of the Arkansas Republican Party will be the GOP nominee for Arkansas treasurer in the fall.

Saline County Circuit Clerk Dennis Milligan defeated state Rep. Duncan Baird on Tuesday. At 11:47 p.m. with 2,361 of 2,459 precincts reporting, Milligan had 84,992 votes, or 54 percent, to Baird's 73,831 votes, or 46 percent.

Milligan will face Democratic candidate Karen Sealy Garcia and Libertarian nominee Chris Hayes in the November election.

The state's former treasurer, Martha Shoffner, was convicted this year on bribery and extortion charges. Milligan and Baird each said they were the better candidate to overhaul the office, which receives deposits from state agencies, invests excess state funds and distributes tax revenue back to local governments.

Milligan is a former state Republican Party chairman and has been Saline County circuit clerk since 2009. Baird joined the legislature that year and is co-chairman of the Joint Budget Committee.

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