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Presidential election motivates Arkansas Delta's early voters • Arkansas Advocate

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Presidential election motivates Arkansas Delta's early voters • Arkansas Advocate


Despite Thursday’s near-constant rainfall in East Arkansas, rural Delta counties’ few early voting locations were almost never empty.

Residents of Crittenden, Lee and Phillips counties showed up to make their voices heard in next week’s local, state and federal elections. Lee and Phillips counties have one early voting site each, at their respective county courthouses.

Crittenden County has three early voting locations after the Arkansas Supreme Court ended a dispute between voters and local officials by ordering that early voting must occur at two West Memphis churches. The third site is in Marion, the county seat.

One of the two churches, the Seventh Street Church of Christ, saw about 90 early voters between 4:30 and 6 p.m. Wednesday, poll worker Gwen Freeman said Thursday morning.

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Unlike in a few North Arkansas counties, voters in the Delta haven’t been expressing doubt about the security of the machines they use to vote, according to poll workers in all three Delta counties, including Freeman.

When voters have questions for poll workers, they’re often about judicial candidates or proposed state constitutional amendments, first-time poll worker Lawrence Carter said.

“They have a lot of questions about the Supreme Court nominees because they really don’t know who they are,” Carter said. “…Most people vote [entirely] Democrat or Republican, but they can’t because the Supreme Court is neither one of those.”

First-time voters — some of whom are older rather than newly eligible young people — also tend to have questions about how to use the voting machines, Carter said.

Poll workers in Lee County said they’ve gotten some of the same questions about voting machines and the three constitutional amendments. Outside the courthouse’s “small courtroom” with its three voting machines, poll workers taped copies of all 24 possible ballots Lee County voters can receive depending on where they live, with the goal of helping people understand their ballots before they walk into the room.

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Lee County poll judge Vivian Humbert supervises early voting at the county courthouse on Thursday, October 31, 2024. (Tess Vrbin/Arkansas Advocate)

About 25% of Lee County’s registered voters had already voted by Thursday afternoon, poll workers Donna Westbrook and Vivian Humbert said. Early voting began statewide on Oct. 21.

Meanwhile in Helena-West Helena in Phillips County, poll workers have seen roughly 250 voters per day, which is typical for a presidential election year, poll worker Linda Hayden said.

No one from the State Board of Election Commissioners was present at the Phillips County Courthouse Thursday afternoon, but Phillips County is one of several counties that the board is monitoring during early voting and will continue to monitor on Election Day.

SBEC monitored Phillips and Lee counties during the 2022 election; the board is monitoring Crittenden County but not Lee County this year.

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Voters’ priorities

Voters in all three counties said the most important matter on their ballot was the presidential race between Democratic Vice President Kamala Harris and Republican former President Donald Trump.

John Cummings of West Memphis said he is a lifelong Democrat and supported both Harris and state legislative candidate Jessie McGruder. West Memphis has two state House seats, and both have contested races with no incumbents.

Rosie Staples of Helena-West Helena said she also voted for Harris, largely out of concern over the cost of living and access to healthcare.

Rosie Staples of Helena-West Helena voted early on Thursday, October 31, 2024. (Tess Vrbin/Arkansas Advocate)

“I think the best choice is the person that can reduce those costs,” Staples said. “…You can’t trust politicians, period, but you just hope for the best.”

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Stone Robbins, also of Helena-West Helena, said his top priority was “Trump all the way.”

“His track record from 2016 to 2020 versus [President Joe] Biden’s track record from 2020 to now is incomparable,” Robbins said.

Randy Bradshaw of Marianna said he also supports Trump. He called the current state of the economy “pitiful” and said he believes current leaders are allowing illegal immigrants and drugs to flow into the country.

“I’m not a Democrat or a Republican,” Bradshaw said. “It don’t matter who is on the ticket. It’s who I think can do the job better… I care about the welfare of my family, myself and everyone else in the United States.”

Bradshaw and his wife voted just before a 1:30 p.m. influx of voters that created a line out the door of the room with the voting machines.

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Kerry Stiles, also of Marianna, was part of that line. She said the second-most important race on her ballot was the one for Arkansas House District 62.

Incumbent Rep. Mark McElroy, R-Tillar, faces a rematch against his previous Democratic opponent, Dexter Miller of Helena-West Helena. In 2022, McElroy won by fewer than 200 votes in a newly-drawn district and had previously represented an almost entirely different part of the Delta.

Stiles is a farmer, and she said she supported McElroy for reelection because he is “a big supporter of farmers.”

Her occupation also made it important for her to vote for Issue 1, she said. The proposed constitutional amendment would allow state lottery proceeds to fund scholarships and grants to students in vocational-technical schools and institutions, and Stiles said she believes Arkansas needs more people trained in vo-tech fields.

Two other constitutional amendments are on Arkansans’ ballots, though the votes for Issue 3 will not be counted. The measure would have made changes to the state’s medical marijuana industry; Robbins said he supported it, while Bradshaw said he opposed it.

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Teresa Ball said one of her priorities was Issue 2. She recently moved to Fairfield Bay but voted Thursday in Marianna because she is still registered there. 

Issue 2 would repeal a Pope County casino license and require countywide special elections for any new casinos built in Arkansas.

“That should be on the ballot, and it should not just be big money that buys [casinos],” Ball said.

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Arkansas

Joshua Harris tackles “American Ninja Warrior” and Arkansas health problems

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Joshua Harris tackles “American Ninja Warrior” and Arkansas health problems


Most people can barely conquer the monkey bars at a playground, but Joshua Harris is out here tackling American Ninja Warrior obstacles and using that spotlight to help Arkansans eat healthier.

Harris recently competed on American Ninja Warrior for the second time, calling it “an incredible experience” and saying it’s fun to be part of a national show while taking on the obstacles.

Away from the course, Harris runs a nonprofit called Well Fed, which operates across Arkansas and provides healthy food for people struggling with diet-related illnesses. He said the goal is to improve health outcomes by helping people access healthier options.

“Well, Arkansas has a lot of bad statistics when it comes to health, and we need to find ways to help change those health outcomes,” Harris said. He added that healthy food, including fruits and vegetables, can help people dealing with diabetes and cardiovascular disease, and that the mission fits with his own lifestyle of training, exercise and staying healthy.

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Harris said his Ninja Warrior training and his nonprofit work connect in more ways than one. He described the Ninja Warrior community as full of like-minded people, and said the show embraced the story behind his work on food access in Arkansas.

He also said Well Fed runs food-as-medicine programs across Arkansas, working with health care to bring fruits and vegetables to people who need them. Harris said the aim is to make a measurable difference, including the possibility of seeing “type two diabetes reversed.”

As for what it’s like competing on TV, Harris said many viewers don’t realize the show is filmed overnight.

“When I’m doing Ninja Warrior on the TV show, a lot of people don’t realize that’s filmed at night, so it’s like three in the morning,” Harris said. He said he focuses on staying awake and locked in, with plenty of distractions from crowds and bright lights, but called the crew and community “amazing.”

Harris said his episode is coming up soon and he hopes people will watch and cheer him on.

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And he’s not slowing down after that. Harris said he plans to keep training and will head to Ireland in August for the OCR (obstacle course racing) world championship, where he’ll represent Team USA.



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Tulsa downs Northwest Arkansas | Northwest Arkansas Democrat-Gazette

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Tulsa downs Northwest Arkansas | Northwest Arkansas Democrat-Gazette


SPRINGDALE — Tulsa scored two runs in the first INNING and four more in the second to grab an early lead en route to a 9-1 win over Northwest Arkansas on Friday night in front of 4,076 fans at Arvest Ballpark.

The Drillers (44-23) took a 2-0 lead in the top of the first on Chris Newell’s two-out, RBI-single and a bases-loaded walk by Kole Myers. Tulsa snapped a two-game skid.

Naturals manager Brooks Conrad just gave credit to the Drillers for a strong effort.

“You’ve got to tip your cap to the opposing pitching staff,” Conrad said. “They threw great. We had one run in the first, then they blanked us the rest of the game. It wasn’t our lack of effort or lack of preparation. It was just one of those games where we couldn’t get anything going offensively.

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“I think the bright spot was our defense. (Carson) Roccaforte continues to do well. It’s a point now that I see him night in and night out, and it’s to the point I see him every night and it’s just another good night.”

Tulsa, which took advantage of 11 walks by Naturals pitching to go with 12 hits, has already wrapped up the Texas League North Division first-half title. The half ends on Sunday.

Myers added a two-run single in the second, while Zyhir Hope chipped in a run-scoring single and Jake Gelof drew a bases-loaded walk to push the lead to 6-1.

Myers drove in three runs, while center fielder Mike Sirotka finished with three hits, scored a run and drove in one.

Naturals starter Hunter Owens (1-3) allowed six runs on seven hits over two innings of work to absorb the loss. He struck out one and walked four.

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Northwest Arkansas (29-36) got a run in the bottom of the first thanks to a two-out RBI single by shortstop Daniel Vazquez. But the Naturals had a runner thrown out at the plate when Rudy Martin Jr. tried to score from first on Colton Becker’s double.

Despite the back-to-back losses, the Drillers improved to 12-4 in June.

Drillers manager Eric Wedge declined to comment following the game.

Prior to joining the Drillers last year, he had previously spent ten seasons managing at the major league level, including seven years with the Cleveland Indians and three with the Seattle Mariners. His most successful season came in 2007, when he was named the American League Manager of the Year after finishing just one game shy of leading Cleveland to the World Series.

The same two teams continue the series on Saturday evening. First pitch is scheduled for 6:05 p.m. The series concludes on Sunday afternoon at 2:05.

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Naturals 6, Drillers 5 (10 innings)

Martin singled up the middle to drive in the winning run and help Northwest Arkansas outlast Tulsa 6-5 in 10 innings in a game that started an hour late because of a rain delay on Thursday night.

Spencer Nivens started the 10th inning at second base, moved to third on a sacrifice bunt by Vazquez and scored on Martin’s hit.

Northwest Arkansas rallied from an early 4-0 deficit to claim the win. The Drillers scored four times in the top of the second, but the Naturals got three back in the fourth and tied the game on Colton Becker’s RBI triple.

Tulsa bounced right back with a run in the top of the seventh, but again Northwest Arkansas bounced back to tie the game in the eighth. Martin reached on an error and scored on a wild pitch.

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Martin and Vazquez had two hits each. They drove in a run each. Martin scored twice.

Augusto Mendieta (2-2) picked up the win in relief. He tossed two hitless innings of relief, struck out five and walked one.



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Authorities report 2 Tulsa residents found dead in Arkansas from apparent murder-suicide

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Authorities report 2 Tulsa residents found dead in Arkansas from apparent murder-suicide


BENTON COUNTY, Ark. — The Benton County Sheriff’s Office reported two Tulsa residents were found dead in a car parked off an Arkansas highway in what authorities believe is an apparent murder-suicide.

On Wednesday, deputies with the sheriff’s office stated they received a report about a car parked of Old Highway 68 near Siloam Springs with what appeared to be two deceased people inside.

Once authorities reached the scene, they were able to confirm both individuals had passed away.

Following an investigation, the Benton County Sheriff’s Office said they confirmed the individuals in the car were 26-year-old Kena Donshaie Knapper and 5-year-old Tyler Zane Winston from Tulsa, Oklahoma.

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According to the Arkansas State Medical Examiner, Winston’s death was ruled as a homicide while Knapper’s death was ruled a suicide.

At this time, the Arkansas State Crime Laboratory is still completing the final written report in this case.

FOX23 will provide more information in this case as it becomes available.



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