LITTLE ROCK — Prosecuting Attorney Scott Ellington and state Rep. Clark Hall of Marvell will compete in a June 12 runoff for the 1st Congressional District Democratic nomination, according to the complete but unofficial election results. Ellington led his two rivals Tuesday evening and early today but failed to get the bare majority to avoid a runoff.
Ellington, who is the prosecuting attorney for the 2nd Judicial District and lives in Jonesboro, and Hall pulled far ahead of Gary Latanich, an economics professor at Arkansas State University in Jonesboro. They were vying to challenge U.S. Rep. Rick Crawford, a Republican from Jonesboro, in the November general election.
None of the three had received a majority of the votes. Ellington’s share of the votes hovered near 50 percent but did not surpass it. If no candidate receives a majority of the vote in a preferential primary, state law requires that the top two vote-getters compete in a general primary.
With all 687 precincts reporting, the unofficial results of the primary were:
Ellington . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27,999 Hall . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21,955 Latanich . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6,616
The 1st District runs the entire length of the eastern edge of the state and extends into north-central Arkansas. It includes 28 full counties and portions of Jefferson and Searcy counties.
Marion Berry, a Democrat from Gillett, represented the 1st District for seven two-year terms, but in 2010, he did not seek re-election, citing health problems.
Crawford was the first Republican elected to represent the district since 1873.
All three Democrats seeking to unseat Crawford this year said they believe that the 2010 election result was an anomaly and they expect the district to return to its Democratic roots.
Ellington said late Tuesday that he was pleased with the results.
“I’m very humbled by the votes, the numbers I received. I mean, surprised? I guess, yeah, I’m surprised,” he said, noting that he entered the race just 10 weeks ago and raised about a third of the money Hall did.
As the race appeared to be headed for a runoff early today, he said he would work hard to secure the nomination.
Hall’s campaign manager, Forest Boles, said he was confident that Hall would win in a runoff.
“We know we have the best chance to beat Rick Crawford in the fall,” he said.
“It’s close. We don’t know what the final tally’s going to be. If it goes to a runoff, we’re looking forward to getting out there,” he said.
Hall has served three terms in the state House of Representatives. Before that he served on the Phillips County Quorum Court from 1985-94 and was mayor of Marvell from 1995 to 2006.
Ellington was elected in 2010 as the prosecuting attorney for the 2nd Judicial District. Before that he was an attorney in private practice.
Latanich, who has never run for or held public office, said he was disappointed by the outcome but proud of his campaign.
He said he was not sure which of the other Democratic candidates he’d endorse in a runoff because even after months of campaigning, he is still not sure where they stand on key economic issues.
“Neither of my rivals really addressed the economic issues,” he said. “I encourage anyone who voted for me to look further into these candidates.”
Latanich has been an economics professor at Arkansas State University for 31 years.
Hall was the first to enter the race, and for much of it was the presumptive frontrunner, receiving endorsements or financial support from Arkansas Democrats, including U.S. Rep. Mike Ross, Attorney General Dustin McDaniel and several state lawmakers.
Hall also received the lion’s share of campaign contributions. In a report filed with the Federal Election Commission before the primary, he reported raising $243,443 through May 2.
Since that report he has notified the commission of thousands of dollars in contributions from political action committees and individuals as well as a $50,000 loan he made to the campaign.
In his pre-primary report, Ellington reported raising $54,815 and has also reported additional contributions since. He has not lent or contributed any of his own money to the campaign.
Latanich raised more than $40,000 through May 2, including $24,000 in loans and contributions that he made to the campaign.
Political observers said before the primary that none of the three candidates had the name recognition to carry the entire district.
In addition to Crawford, two other candidates will be on the ballot in November for the 1st Congressional District seat: Jessica Paxton of the Libertarian Party and Jacob Holloway of the Green Party.
Front Section, Pages 1 on 05/23/2012