Arkansas legislators reflect on polarization, safety after murder of Minnesota lawmaker

Arkansas’ political leaders have described feelings of concern and a heightened attention to safety following the murder of a Minnesota state lawmaker and her husband earlier this month. 

Former Minnesota House Speaker Rep. Melissa Hortman and her husband were killed in what Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz said appeared to be “a politically motivated assassination.” Law enforcement officers arrested Vance Boelter on June 15. He faces charges for their murders and for shooting Minnesota state Sen. John Hoffman and his wife who are expected to recover, according to the Minnesota Reformer.

Arkansas House Speaker Rep. Brian Evans, R-Cabot, said he knew Hortman and attended a number of events with her last year.

“It was just a very surreal moment … Just knowing that one of my colleagues, how quickly life could change for one of us,” he said. 

The Advocate spoke to elected officials of both parties, and most said they weren’t afraid for their safety. However, Evans said the act of violence would not and could not be ignored.

“In today’s climate, ensuring safety is not just a precaution, it’s a responsibility,” he said. 

Since the shooting, the addresses for many Arkansas legislators have been removed from the general assembly’s website, as first reported by the Arkansas Times. 

Efforts have been made in recent years to improve security at the Arkansas State Capitol by increasing Capitol Police presence around the grounds and within the complex’s buildings, Evans said.

Little Rock Republican Sen. Mark Johnson said state lawmakers have security at the Capitol, but once they walk outside, they’re exposed.

“Crazies know no boundaries,” Johnson said. “I have never had any fear for my own safety or that of my family because I’m in the Legislature, but it’s a wake up call that maybe I should just be a little more careful.”

Benton Republican Sen. Kim Hammer said he and other lawmakers have felt safer since the Legislature decided during last year’s fiscal session to have Capitol Police handle security at the Multi-Agency Complex building, Big MAC for short, instead of paid contractors.

Hammer said everyone should condemn violent acts, and that he wouldn’t live in fear of potential threats.

“It’s not the first time in history that elected officials have been targeted,” he said. “You go back to when they [Republican Congressmen] were playing ball on a ballfield. They were targeted. You go back to the head of the Democratic Party here in Arkansas. He was murdered.”

A gunman opened fire on Congressional Republicans practicing for a charity baseball game in Virginia in 2017. Democratic Party of Arkansas Chair Bill Gwatney was murdered by a gunman at the state party’s headquarters in 2008.

Everyone the Advocate spoke with condemned the shootings, including Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders. When contacted for comment, her office pointed to a social media post where Sanders said she was “heartbroken” to hear of what happened. 

“Violence has no place in our democracy,” she wrote. “Bryan and I are praying for the victims and their families.”

Secretary of State Cole Jester’s spokesperson Samantha Boyd said in an email that security was a top priority, and that events such as what happened in Minnesota “certainly intensify concerns and our push for urgency.” At the same time, Boyd said law enforcement was striking a balance between security and public access.

Meanwhile, Jester himself condemned the shootings while touting security funding approved by legislators during the session.

“​​Since the first day I took office, we have been taking action to harden the physical infrastructure of the State Capitol against the kind of despicable actions we saw in Minnesota,” Jester wrote in an emailed statement. “We are thankful to the legislature for giving us funding to do so this spring. Further, we have expanded the State Capitol Police and strengthened their training regimen. Evil is real, and we stand ready to fight back.”

Even with increasing polarization nationally, Evans and other Arkansas legislators highlighted the cordial relationships between lawmakers, regardless of their party affiliation. Those relationships and the example it sets are part of the reason why political polarization has not taken greater root within the state’s legislative body the way it had in other states, they said.

“I do think that more people buy into the lack of civility; they believe that’s just how it is,” Evans said. “You see it a lot with freshman members when they come in now. They’re used to seeing what’s happening on the national news and the national scene, and they think everything’s about a soundbite or whatever.”

A week after political assassination, democracy group tries to chart a way forward

Evans said that most legislators, however, quickly adapt to the body’s dynamics by the end of their first session.

House Minority Leader Rep. Andrew Collins of Little Rock and Senate Minority Leader Sen. Greg Leding of Fayetteville agreed that Arkansas’ Legislature was less polarized than in other states. But the Democrats also expressed greater concern about threats of physical violence against elected officials.

Leding said charged rhetoric from legislators when pushing their bills — especially those framed as “protecting vulnerable kids” — contributes to the problem.

“It could easily plant the idea in someone’s head that there are left-leaning people out there who are targeting children,” he said.

When people interact online, Collins said it seems more extreme than if that same interaction happened in-person. He and other lawmakers from both parties agreed that the conversations surrounding politics were more heated now than before.

“You never know what sends someone into that mindset or into that form of rage that triggers them to take this type of action, as has happened in Minnesota,” Evans said.

Immediately following the assassination, Evans said the House’s security director began a risk assessment. Senate President Pro Tempore Bart Hester, R-Cave Springs, said on Friday that those conversations had not yet happened for the Senate. 

Hester said that “crazy people are going to do crazy things” and that once people set their mind to committing violence and are willing to give up their lives to do so, there wasn’t much that could be done.

Leding took issue with this characterization. 

When lawmakers repeatedly demonize vague enemies like “the radical left,” Leding said, it emboldens people to take actions that would otherwise be unthinkable.

“It is deeply irresponsible to just blanket all violence or lay all violence at the feet of people suffering with mental health issues. That is just shrugging off the responsibility of the language we use,” Leding said.