Arkansas: who should earn your vote for Congress in 2026

Opinion · The paper’s scorecard

Arkansas: every race for Congress on the 3 November 2026 ballot, and how the candidates measure up against our standards.

Sitting and former members are scored on the same key votes, read from the official House and Senate roll calls; each vote links to the record. Candidates who have never served in Congress have no votes to score, and outside the battlegrounds we have not researched them, so they are marked as not scored. Where only one candidate could be measured, the mark rates that record on its own; it is not a verdict on the opponent. How the marks work · All states

U.S. Senate R+15

✓ Meets our standards: Tom Cotton

Meets our standards

Tom Cotton

Republican · incumbent

Scored on 23 key votes · total +2

✓Smaller government
✓Small business over giants
✗Live and let live
✓Light touch on tech
✗Free speech
✗No surveillance state
✗Home first, open trade
✓Checks on power
✓Right to bear arms
✓Hard on violent crime

With us (10)

Voted for the 2025 package cancelling about $9 billion in approved spending. Source
Voted against the $1.9 trillion American Rescue Plan. Source
Voted against the Inflation Reduction Act. Source

Against us (13)

Voted for the June 2026 bill adding about $70 billion for immigration enforcement. Source
Voted against the Respect for Marriage Act. Source
Voted for the 2024 package that carried the law forcing TikTok's sale or ban. Source

Hallie Shoffner

Democrat

No congressional voting record; not scored

District 1 R+23

No mark

Rick Crawford

Republican · incumbent

Scored on 27 key votes · total +0

✓Smaller government
~Small business over giants
✗Live and let live
✓Light touch on tech
✗Free speech
✗No surveillance state
✗Home first, open trade
~Checks on power
✓Right to bear arms
✓Hard on violent crime

With us (14)

Voted for the Limit, Save, Grow Act tying the 2023 debt-limit increase to spending cuts. Source
Voted for the 2025 package cancelling about $9 billion in approved spending. Source
Voted for a balanced-budget amendment to the Constitution. Source

Against us (13)

Voted against the 2022 antitrust package funding merger enforcement with fees on the largest deals. Source
Voted against the Respect for Marriage Act. Source
Voted for the 2024 law forcing TikTok's sale or ban. Source

Terri Green

Democrat

No congressional voting record; not scored

District 2 R+8

✓ Meets our standards: French Hill

Meets our standards

French Hill

Republican · incumbent

Scored on 26 key votes · total +2

✓Smaller government
✓Small business over giants
✗Live and let live
✓Light touch on tech
✗Free speech
✗No surveillance state
✗Home first, open trade
✓Checks on power
✓Right to bear arms
✓Hard on violent crime

With us (15)

Voted for the Limit, Save, Grow Act tying the 2023 debt-limit increase to spending cuts. Source
Voted for the 2025 package cancelling about $9 billion in approved spending. Source
Voted for a balanced-budget amendment to the Constitution. Source

Against us (11)

Voted against the Respect for Marriage Act. Source
Voted for the 2024 law forcing TikTok's sale or ban. Source
Voted for the Antisemitism Awareness Act, which civil-liberties groups opposed as a limit on campus speech. Source

Chris Jones

Democrat

No congressional voting record; not scored

District 3 R+13

✓ Meets our standards: Steve Womack

Robb Ryerse

Democrat

No congressional voting record; not scored

Meets our standards

Steve Womack

Republican · incumbent

Scored on 24 key votes · total +2

✓Smaller government
✓Small business over giants
✗Live and let live
✓Light touch on tech
✗Free speech
✗No surveillance state
✗Home first, open trade
✓Checks on power
✓Right to bear arms
✓Hard on violent crime

With us (15)

Voted for the Limit, Save, Grow Act tying the 2023 debt-limit increase to spending cuts. Source
Voted for the 2025 package cancelling about $9 billion in approved spending. Source
Voted for a balanced-budget amendment to the Constitution. Source

Against us (9)

Voted against the Respect for Marriage Act. Source
Voted for the 2024 law forcing TikTok's sale or ban. Source
Voted for the Antisemitism Awareness Act, which civil-liberties groups opposed as a limit on campus speech. Source

District 4 R+20

✓ Meets our standards: Bruce Westerman

James Russell

Democrat

No congressional voting record; not scored

Meets our standards

Bruce Westerman

Republican · incumbent

Scored on 27 key votes · total +3

✓Smaller government
~Small business over giants
✗Live and let live
✓Light touch on tech
✗Free speech
✓No surveillance state
✗Home first, open trade
✓Checks on power
✓Right to bear arms
✓Hard on violent crime

With us (18)

Voted for the Limit, Save, Grow Act tying the 2023 debt-limit increase to spending cuts. Source
Voted for the 2025 package cancelling about $9 billion in approved spending. Source
Voted for a balanced-budget amendment to the Constitution. Source

Against us (9)

Voted against the 2022 antitrust package funding merger enforcement with fees on the largest deals. Source
Voted against the Respect for Marriage Act. Source
Voted for the 2024 law forcing TikTok's sale or ban. Source

Photo credits. Official congressional portraits are works of the U.S. government and in the public domain.