What to anticipate in Arkansas politics in 2023 | Opinion | magnoliareporter.com
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Here’s the 2024 Arkansas Food Hall of Fame finalists – Arkansas Times
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On Monday the Division ofArkansas Heritage announced the finalists for the 2024 Arkansas Food Hall of Fame. Arkansas Heritage launched the Arkansas Food Hall of Fame program in 2016 to recognize the state’s legendary restaurants, proprietors and food-themed events.
Here’s the finalists:
Gone But Not Forgotten:
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Anderson’s (White County)
Juanita’s (Pulaski County)
Polar Freeze (Lawrence County)
Food-Themed Event
Arkansas Pie Festival (Sharp County)
Mayhaw Festival (Union County)
Mt. Nebo Chicken Fry (Yell County)
Slovak Oyster Supper (Arkansas County)
Soup Sunday (Pulaski County)
Proprietor of the Year
Crissy’s Pub Style (Saline County)
Doe’s Eat Place (Pulaski County)
Loca Luna and Red Door (Pulaski County)
Tusk & Trotter American Brasserie (Washington County)
Woods Place (Ouachita County)
Arkansas Food Hall of Fame
Big Banjo Pizza Parlor (Jefferson County)
Brave New Restaurant (Pulaski County)
Charlotte’s Eats and Sweets (Lonoke County)
Dairyette (Montgomery County)
Daisy Queen (Searcy County)
Herman’s Ribhouse (Washington County)
Hugo’s (Washington County)
K Hall & Sons (Pulaski County)
Old South Restaurant (Pope County)
Ray’s (Drew County)
Taliano’s Italian Restaurant (Sebastian County)
The Dixie Pig (Mississippi County)
The Faded Rose (Pulaski County)
People’s Choice
Beech Street Bistro (Ashley County)
Bennett’s Seafood (Garland County)
BubbaLu’s (Garland County)
The Purple Banana (Benton County)
Top Dog Catering (Lonoke County)
You can vote for the People’s Choice category here.
Honorees will be inducted into the Arkansas Hall of Fame during a special event in September. The event details will be announced later this year. More information about the Arkansas Food Hall of Fame can be found here.
The Republican supermajorities in both chambers of the Arkansas Legislature will see some changes and some constancy in its leadership in advance of the 2025 legislative session.
Sen. Bart Hester, R-Cave Springs, will be Senate President Pro Tempore for another two years, while Rep. Brian Evans, R-Cabot, became House Speaker Designate last week with an overwhelming 91 votes from the 100-member body. The speaker’s position must be affirmed by the House when the 95th General Assembly convenes in January.
Evans promised his colleagues “a direction of firmness, fairness and consistency” in a speech before the vote Thursday.
“A leader is only as good as the team that they lead, and good leaders understand the importance of working together, communicating well and building strong relationships, built upon trust and respect,” he said.
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After legislative staff counted the ballots and declared Evans the winner, his sole opponent, Rep. Johnny Rye, R-Trumann, was the first member to congratulate him on the House floor. Rep. Jack Ladyman, R-Joneboro, had also been running for speaker before withdrawing May 6 due to health issues within his family.
House Speaker Designate Brian Evans (right), R-Cabot, accepts congratulations from his fellow Republican Reps. (from left) Marcus Richmond of Harvey, Les Warren of Hot Springs and John Maddox of Mena on the House floor Thursday, May 9, 2024. (Tess Vrbin/Arkansas Advocate)
Evans told reporters Thursday that he appreciated his colleagues’ confidence in him and that outgoing Speaker Matthew Shepherd, R-El Dorado, “has done a tremendous job” in his position. Shepherd is running for an eighth House term but declined to seek a fourth term as speaker.
The House has 82 Republican members; Evans and Shepherd are among the 57 Republicans facing contested races in November’s general election.
Evans was a member of the Cabot School Board for 10 years before being elected to the Legislature in 2018. He has been chairman of the House Education Committee since January of last year, and he helped Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders’ office draft the LEARNS Act, a wide-ranging 2023 law that changed several aspects of the state’s public education system.
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“Gov. Sanders has said through her administration multiple times that the LEARNS Act is fluid,” Evans said. “There are going to be things, as it’s being implemented now in our school systems, that we’ll need to come back and take a look at and tweak a little bit.”
Among House Republicans’ other policy priorities are criminal justice, as exemplified by the Protect Arkansas Act of 2023, and the ongoing effort to cut income taxes, Evans said.
Later last Thursday, House Republicans privately elected Rep. Howard Beaty of Crossett as majority leader for 2025, succeeding Rep. Marcus Richmond of Harvey. Beaty defeated Reps. Aaron Pilkington of Knoxville and Keith Brooks of Little Rock.
Beaty said in an interview Monday that his background in economic development gives him the organizational and relationship-building skills necessary to lead the caucus. He has been in the House since 2019.
Republican Reps. David Ray of Maumelle (left) and Howard Beaty of Crossett listen to the Speaker on the House floor Monday, September 11, 2023. (John Sykes/Arkansas Advocate)
He told his colleagues while seeking their votes that he believes they all value the variety of perspectives among them.
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“[We have] different perspectives but a common purpose, and I think that common purpose is where the power of caucus comes in,” he said.
Beaty selected Rep. David Ray of Maumelle as the caucus policy chair and said Ray is a good fit for the job because he “lives and breathes policy.”
Rep. Stetson Painter of Mountain Home will succeed Rep. Jon Milligan of Lake City as House Majority Whip. On X (formerly Twitter), Painter congratulated Evans and Beaty on their new roles and said he hopes the three of them “will be a great leadership team for the House.”
Legislative whips are responsible for ensuring that members of their party participate in meetings and vote in line with the party’s values.
The 18 House Democrats will choose a new minority whip since Rep. Vivian Flowers, D-Pine Bluff, is not running for reelection. The caucus election will be May 29, said Minority Leader Tippi McCullough, D-Little Rock, who will defend her leadership position.
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She said the party hopes to increase its numbers in the general election.
“We lost four seats due to redistricting [in 2022], so hopefully we can start to move forward again,” she said.
Senate leadership
On May 2, Hester fended off a challenge from Sen. Terry Rice, R-Waldron, to win a second term as President Pro Tempore. Sen. Blake Johnson, R-Corning, will continue as Senate Majority Leader, and Sen. Breanne Davis, R-Russellville, is set to succeed Sen. Ricky Hill, R-Cabot, as Majority Whip.
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Sen. Bart Hester, R-Cave Springs (John Sykes/Arkansas Advocate)
“The most important thing to understand in leading the Senate is that members don’t get told what to do,” Hester said in an interview. “But if you ask them to do something with a legitimate reason, typically you can get done what you need.”
Two years ago, Hester defeated the sitting president pro tempore, Sen. Jimmy Hickey, R-Texarkana.
One of Hester’s strengths as a leader is his communication skills, said Sen. Jonathan Dismang, R-Searcy, who was president pro tempore from 2013 to 2019.
“The way that he’s able to communicate with members and keep them involved and engaged is really to his benefit, and I anticipate that to continue on as we move into the next session,” Dismang said.
Senate Minority Leader Greg Leding, D-Fayetteville, added that Hester has “always treated our caucus fairly.”
Similarly to Evans, Hester said Senate Republicans’ policy priorities for 2025 will include tax cuts and aspects of the LEARNS Act.
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“I think we’re going to double down on education freedom for students,” Hester said, referring to the Educational Freedom Account voucher program created by the LEARNS Act.
He added that the Legislature should “continue to look into IT-type concerns for minors.”
Last year, Sanders signed the Social Media Safety Act, which would require new users on large social networks to provide information verifying their age. A federal judge temporarily blocked the law before it took effect. Sen. Greg Leding, D-Fayetteville (John Sykes/Arkansas Advocate)
Meanwhile, the six Senate Democrats won’t hold leadership elections until after November’s general election. The only member expected to leave the Senate is Minority Whip Linda Chesterfield, D-Little Rock, who is retiring after a 20-year stint in the Legislature.
Leding will reach his term limit in 2027, and he said he hopes to continue being minority leader for his final two years. He held the same position for one term in the House.
“I haven’t heard of anybody eager to replace me,” Leding said.
The Southeastern Conference released the men’s basketball conference opponents for the 2024-25 season on Monday. The Razorbacks will play LSU, Missouri and new league foe/long-time rival Texas twice during the regular season, once at home and once on the road.
Arkansas will additionally host Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Ole Miss, Mississippi State and new league member Oklahoma once while traveling to Auburn, Kentucky, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas A&M and Vanderbilt for single games.
Conference play tips off on Saturday, Jan. 4, and runs through Saturday, Mar. 8. Each SEC team plays the other 15 teams at least once during league play. Three teams will be played a second time during the schedule – two of which are permanent opponents and one that will change each year. The continuation and renewal of historic rivalries was a point of emphasis when creating the schedule as the SEC welcomes Oklahoma and Texas as new members.
Times, dates and television information will be announced at a later date.
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Arkansas 2024-25 SEC Opponents
HOME GAMES
Alabama
Florida
Georgia
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LSU
Ole Miss
Mississippi State
Missouri
Oklahoma
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Texas
AWAY GAMES
at Auburn
at Kentucky
at LSU
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at Missouri
at South Carolina
at Tennessee
at Texas
at Texas A&M
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at Vanderbilt
NOTES:
• While the Arkansas-Texas series dates back to the Razorbacks’ first season of basketball (1923-24), this year will mark Texas’ first trip to Bud Walton Arena since coming to Fayetteville in both 2009 and 2010. Arkansas won, 67-61, versus then #7 Texas on Jan. 6, 2009, with then #2 Texas winning, 96-85, the following year (Jan. 5, 2010).
Arkansas owns an 87-68 advantage in the all-time series versus the Longhorns. The home team has had a decided advantage in the series as Arkansas leads 46-22 in games played in Fayetteville and Texas leads 42-27 in games played in Austin. Arkansas built is 19-game lead in the series by going 14-4 versus Texas in neutral-site games.
Arkansas opened Texas’ new basketball arena – the Moody Center – on Oct. 29, 2022, in an exhibition game.^ The last time the two programs officially met was the 2018-19 season opener at the ESPN Armed Forces Classic in El Paso on Nov. 9, 2018. Texas won 73-71 in overtime.^ The last time Arkansas and Texas had a home-and-home series in the same season was Arkansas’s final season in the Southwest Conference (1990-91). Then #2 Arkansas defeated Texas, 101-89, on Jan. 10, 1991, in Fayetteville. Later, then #23 Texas upset then #3 Arkansas, 99-86, in Austin on Mar. 3, 1991. The Razorbacks went on to win the rubber match on Mar. 10, 1991, when then #5 Arkansas beat then #23 Texas, 120-89, to win the 1991 SWC Tournament Championship in Dallas.
Texas is one of six schools that Arkansas has faced at least 100 times. The Razorbacks and Longhorns have met on 155 previous occasions, which ties SMU for the second-most meetings versus a school. Texas A&M leads the way with 169 all-time meetings.
• Arkansas will host new SEC member Oklahoma in a single-game matchup. The two programs have met in each of the previous three years at Tulsa’s BOK Center for the Crimson and Cardinal Classic. The “home team” won each of those games, including the Sooners winning 88-66 on Dec. 11, 2021, and 79-70, on Dec. 9, 2023. The Razorbacks won, 88-78, on Dec. 10, 2022. Prior to the series in Tulsa, the programs had not met since Nov. 23, 2017, at the Phil Knight Invitational in Portland. The last time the two teams met in a true home game for either program was Dec. 4, 2012, when the Razorbacks beat the Sooners, 81-78, in Bud Walton Arena. Arkansas owns a 17-14 all-time advantage in the series, including an 8-4 mark in Fayetteville.
• Arkansas and Missouri will be playing a home-and-home series for the 13th consecutive year. The streak coincides with the number of years since the Tigers joined the SEC (2012-13). Arkansas leads the all-time series with Missouri, 35-27, and leads 16-9 since Mizzou joined the SEC, including wins in seven of the last eight meetings.
• Arkansas and LSU have met for a home-and-home series in all but two seasons since the Razorbacks joined the SEC (1991-92). The Razorbacks and Tigers only met once in 2013 (in Baton Rouge) and just once in 2015 (in Fayetteville). Arkansas leads the Tigers 39-31 since the Razorbacks joined the SEC, leads 43-36 all-time and has won eight of the last 13 versus LSU. In fact, since Arkansas joined the SEC, the Tigers are the Razorbacks’ most common SEC opponent with 70 meetings followed by Mississippi State (60), Alabama (59), Auburn (59) and Ole Miss (57).
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• After back-to-back years of playing Kentucky in a home-and-home series, the Razorbacks will only face the Wildcats once in 2024-25 and the game will be played at Rupp Arena.
• For just the third time since Texas A&M joined the SEC (2012-13), Arkansas and the Aggies will meet just once in the regular season. The other times it happened were 2015 – a single game in Fayetteville – and 2014 – a single game in College Station. (NOTE: The two programs were scheduled to play home-and-home in 2021 but only played once in Bud Walton Arena as the game set to be played in Reed Arena was canceled due to COVID-19.) Arkansas leads the all-time series with the Aggies, 108-61, and, thanks to a season sweep this past year, the Razorbacks own a 13-10 advantage since A&M joined the SEC. The home teams have dominated the series over the last 13 seasons as Arkansas is 10-1 versus the Aggies at home and Texas A&M is 7-3 versus the Razorbacks in College Station.
• For the fifth straight year, long-time rivals Arkansas and Ole Miss will only play once. In their history, the Razorbacks and Rebels have met on 86 previous occasions, which is second to Texas A&M (169) for all-time meetings among current SEC programs. LSU is the next closest for all-time meetings among SEC programs at 79.
• Arkansas and Tennessee will only play once and it will be in Knoxville. The schedule has favored the Volunteers of late. Including this coming year and since 2018-19 – a seven-year span, six games will have been played in Knoxville compared to three in Fayetteville. The teams have only had two home-and-home series over the span. Including this year, Arkansas and Tennessee are set to play just once in a season for the fifth time, four in Knoxville while Tennessee has only had to come to Bud Walton once in such years.
For more information on Arkansas Men’s Basketball, follow @RazorbackMBB on X.
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