The Democratic Party of Arkansas’s next chair will be Marcus Jones, a retired Army colonel and former congressional candidate, who announced his intention to enter the contest on Friday.
His announcement follows DPA Vice Chair Jackie Cotton’s announcement that she is also vying for the top position the day before.
In 2024, Jones became well-known in Arkansas politics because he ran a decent but ultimately unsuccessful campaign for the District 2 seat held by Republican Representative French Hill. Jones’ loss puts him in good company; former state senator Joyce Elliott and state senator Clarke Tucker have also made it difficult for elderly French to maintain the seat he has held since 2015.
Jones stated on Friday that he believes his greatest contribution at this time would be as the chairman of the state party.
I’ve demonstrated my leadership abilities in the past. “As we strive to build our brand and elect Democrats, this is the best place for me to serve Arkansas and the party right now,” he added.
Before he and his family returned to Arkansas, Jones’ military career took him to Norway as the program director at NATO’s Joint Warfare Center and to Kuwait as a field artillery officer. In a 2024 interview with the Arkansas Times, Jones characterized himself as an ordinary, middle-class, public school-educated Arkansan.
Since candidates for DPA chair have until August 4 at noon to submit a notice of candidacy, other people will probably enter the race in addition to Cotton and Jones. Each of the 267 members of Arkansas’ Democratic State Committee will have a vote in the election, which takes place on August 16 during a party gathering in Little Rock.
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