LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (KTHV) - National election watchers will get their first Arkansas indicators of how the midterms might play out on May 22. As the deadline to register for those primaries arrives, the county clerk in the bluest discount in a conservative red state is checking to see if Pulaski County will lead a Democratic trend come November.
“This year has been a little special in that we've seen a number of high schools actually go through and do voter registration programs,” said Larry Crane, the four-term Democratic clerk for Pulaski County. “But so far we haven't seen a huge influx of new registrations compared to other election cycles.”
Crane is closely watching to see if new, younger voters sign up. He hopes his son can succeed him in the corner office of the Little Rock courthouse.
“We have a waiting list of about 300 students who will turn 18 either just before the election or on the day of the election,” he said.
Those younger voters may emerge following the activism sparked by the Parkland, Fla., school shooting. Those voter drives are signs energy is out there in some parts of the state.
“Parkland was a big motivating factor for them,” said Georgia Walton, an English teacher at Hall High School in the Little Rock School District. She dropped off a couple dozen voter registration forms Friday before the deadline. “The political climate now is one that does concern our youth and they want to be involved.”
Arkansas doesn't require a party declaration when you register. That makes it harder to figure out if Democrats can expect a surge here two years after President Trump's election.
With 40 years in government, Crane relies on the axiom "all politics is local."
“Yes a ‘blue wave’ could happen in Arkansas. It would probably be due mostly to individual races,” he said. “There are many individual House races where you have people who are going to be very competitive in their home districts.”
Those races will come on both the state and Congressional level. Four Democrats are vying to face Republican representative French Hill in the May primary. That winner could see a huge influx of money and national support depending on the results. That combined with lower turnout on the Republican side could turn the district blue again.
“If those people don’t come back then Democrats may have a whole lot better day this time,” said Crane.
But for now, It’s too soon to tell those trends based on who has signed up. The main emotion again appears to be anger, but where it is directed – at least for new voters – remains to be seen.
“I think that things are in such a disarray now that it doesn't matter what the party is, they're just interested in making a difference and making a change,” Walton said.
Early voting for the primary begins May 7. If a voter misses the deadline for the primary, they can still sign up for any runoff elections coming up in June.
A spokesman for Secretary of State Mark Martin said new voters have several ways to register, including by mail or in person at local public libraries and other government offices.
There are also new voter outreach programs planned for colleges and other schools across the state.