Arkansas is a landlocked state in the West South Central region of the Southern United States. It borders Missouri to the north, Tennessee and Mississippi to the east, Louisiana to the south, Texas to the southwest, and Oklahoma to the west. Its name derives from the Osage language, and refers to their relatives, the Quapaw people. The state's diverse geography ranges from the mountainous regions of the Ozark and Ouachita Mountains, which make up the U.S. Interior Highlands, to the densely forested land in the south known as the Arkansas Timberlands, to the eastern lowlands along the Mississippi River and the Arkansas Delta.
Walnut Ridge is a city in and the county seat of Lawrence County, Arkansas, United States. The population was 5,098 at the United States Census's 2019 estimate. Walnut Ridge lies immediately north of Hoxie. The two towns form a contiguous urban area with approximately 8,000 residents. Williams Baptist University is in College City, a formerly separate community that merged into Walnut Ridge in 2017.
The Ouachita National Forest is a vast congressionally-designated National Forest that lies in the western portion of Arkansas and portions of extreme-eastern Oklahoma, USA.
David Hampton Pryor was an American politician who served as a representative for Arkansas's 4th congressional district from 1966 until 1973 and as a senator from Arkansas from 1979 until 1997. A member of the Democratic Party, Pryor also served as the 39th Governor of Arkansas from 1975 to 1979 and was a member of the Arkansas House of Representatives from 1960 to 1966. He served as the acting chairman of the Arkansas Democratic Party from 2008 to 2009, following Bill Gwatney's assassination.
Matthew Joseph Shepherd is an attorney from his native El Dorado, Arkansas, who is a Republican member of the Arkansas House of Representatives for District 6, which includes western Union County. He was elected in the 2010, 2012, and 2014 legislative races.
Jonathan Earl Woods, known as Jon Woods, is a Republican and a former member of both houses of the Arkansas General Assembly, a record producer, as well as a musician. He is now in federal prison for political corruption, wire and mail fraud, and money laundering.
Bradley Allen Klippert is an American politician, minister, law enforcement officer, and military officer who formerly served as a member of the Washington House of Representatives from the 8th Legislative District.
Stephen Allen Womack is an American politician serving as the U.S. representative for Arkansas's 3rd congressional district since 2011. The district, which was once represented by former Senator J. William Fulbright, covers much of northwestern Arkansas, including Fort Smith, Fayetteville, Springdale, and Womack's hometown of Rogers. A member of the Republican Party, Womack was mayor of Rogers before his election to Congress.
Mark A. Darr is an American politician from Springdale, Arkansas, who was his state's 19th lieutenant governor from 2011 to 2014. A member of the Republican Party, he was elected in 2010 to succeed Democrat Bill Halter. To win the second-ranking post in state government, he defeated another Democrat, state Senator and former House Speaker Shane Broadway by a margin of 51 to 49 percent.
Drew Bowers was the Republican nominee for governor of Arkansas in 1926 and 1928.
Sterling Robertson Cockrill Jr. was an American politician, civic leader and artist in Little Rock, Arkansas.
David James Sanders is a former member of the Arkansas State Senate for District 15, which encompasses Conway County and parts of Faulkner, Perry, Pulaski, and Van Buren counties. From 2011 to 2013, he served a term in the Arkansas House of Representatives for Pulaski County.
David Webster Hillman is an American politician from Almyra, Arkansas, who is a Republican member of the Arkansas House of Representatives. He represented District 13 in the southeastern portion of his state from January 14, 2013 to January 9, 2023.
Reginald Murdock is an American politician and a Democratic member of the Arkansas Senate. Murdock previously served in the Arkansas House of Representatives from 2011 to 2023.
George French Ecton was a civil rights activist and the second African American state legislator in Illinois. He was born a slave in Winchester, Kentucky, in about 1846 to Antonio Ecton and Martha George. In June 1865, after the American Civil War and the abolition of slavery, George and a friend received free papers in the mail and set off to escape slavery, as they were still being held in bondage. When they arrived in Cincinnati, Ohio, they were hired as deck hands on the steam packet Sherman, working a route between Cincinnati and Wheeling, West Virginia. Later, in Cincinnati, George worked at hotels, including the Broadway House, Walnut Street House, Burnett House, and Spencer House. He became ill with smallpox while at the Walnut Street House, but recovered. He also began to attend night school taught by Luella Brown. He was reported to be a college graduate.
James T. White was a Baptist minister and state legislator from Helena and Little Rock, Arkansas. He was a member of the Arkansas House of Representatives and later the Arkansas Senate in the late 1860s and early 1870s. He was also a member of the Arkansas constitutional conventions in 1868 and 1874. He edited the Baptist newspaper, The Arkansas Review. He was an African American and a Republican. In 1868 he was among the first six African Americans to serve in the Arkansas House.
The Ninety-First Arkansas General Assembly was the legislative body of the state of Arkansas in 2017 and 2018. In this General Assembly, the Arkansas Senate and Arkansas House of Representatives were both controlled by the Republicans. In the Senate, 23 senators were Republicans, 11 were Democrats, and one position was vacant until April. In the House, 69 representatives were Republicans, 30 were Democrats, and one was independent.
Jim Olsen is an American politician who serves in the Oklahoma House of Representatives from the 2nd district as a member of the Republican Party. He was elected to the state house in the 2018 election to succeed John R. Bennett. During his tenure he has been criticized by other members of the state house for his positions and statements on abortion, slavery, and education.
The Ninety-Second Arkansas General Assembly is the legislative body of the state of Arkansas in 2019 and 2020. In this General Assembly, the Arkansas Senate and Arkansas House of Representatives were both controlled by the Republicans. In the Senate, 26 senators were Republicans and 9 were Democrats. In the House, 76 representatives were Republicans, 24 were Democrats. A special session was called in March 2020 to address the COVID-19 pandemic.
Kim Hammer is a Missionary Baptist preacher and state legislator in Arkansas. He serves in the Arkansas Senate. He is a Republican. He hosts a weekly conservative talk radio show.
