A Republican Super PAC began running ads Wednesday targeting state Sen. Joyce Elliott, D-Little Rock, who is attempting to unseat three-term incumbent U.S. Rep, French Hill of Little Rock.
The Congressional Leadership Fund has announced $500,000 for broadcast and digital advertising in the Little Rock media market.
The ad barrage won't go unanswered in the 2nd district. The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee $330,000 in Arkansas ad space already reserved, Politico reported Monday.
The 30-second ad alleges, without evidence, that an Elliott victory would jeopardize public safety and attempts to link her to supporters of the Defund the Police movement, which Elliott opposes.
"Ask Elliott, 'What should we do if someone's breaking into our home' because 9-1-1 might be busy if Joyce Elliott wins in November," the ad states.
This is the second time in less than a month that Republicans have made 9-1-1 an issue in the campaign.
Last month, a Hill ad criticized Elliott for voting for the Public Safety Act of 2019, which raised cell phone taxes in order to "develop a next generation 911 system" in Arkansas.
The bill passed Arkansas' Republican controlled House 85-0 and its Republican-controlled Senate 29-3 before being signed into law by the state's two-term Republican governor, Asa Hutchinson.
A spokesman for Elliott, Neil Goodman, portrayed the Republican attacks as inconsistent.
"Congressman Hill's trying to have his cake and eat it too. First he attacks Senator Elliott for funding our endangered 9-1-1 system, and now his dark money buddies are fearmongering about 9-1-1 not working," Goodman said in a written statement.
A spokesman for the Fund has not yet commented.
Read Thursday's Arkansas Democrat-Gazette for the full story.