Arkansas judge tosses lawsuit challenging secretary of state GOP runoff results

An Arkansas judge on Monday dismissed a lawsuit challenging the results and recount procedures for the Republican runoff for secretary of state.

Pulaski County Circuit Judge Tim Fox ruled that Bryan Norris failed to prove any of his allegations that the Saline County Election Commission didn’t follow procedures in the primary runoff and recount. Norris was narrowly defeated by state Sen. Kim Hammer in the March runoff election.

“The court finds that plaintiff’s challenge to the recount procedure and vote tally is specious, ill-founded, and wholly without merit,” Fox wrote. 

Norris lost by less than 1,000 votes to Hammer in the runoff election. Saline was one of six counties where Norris had requested a recount. The results in all six counties matched the election results.

“This ruling confirms what we have said from the very beginning,” Saline County Clerk Doug Curtis said in a news release. “Our election officials followed the law, our poll workers did their jobs, and the results were accurate. The recount confirmed it. The evidence presented at trial confirmed it. And now the court has confirmed it.”

The lawsuit filed against Saline County claimed that ballot boxes weren’t secured with the legally required seals, that election workers who handled and recounted ballots did not take a required oath and that Norris’ representative wasn’t given a priority location to view the recount.

Clint Lancaster, Norris’ attorney, said he was reviewing options on next steps and criticized Fox’s decision.

“The judge missed the entire point. The point was that, of course, the recount would come out the same,” Lancaster said in an email. “However, we can’t know that the ballots run on election night and during the recount were the ones cast during the election.”

A team of 10 poll workers counted a total of 6,970 ballots in the Saline County recount. 

Hammer won Saline County, his home county, by about 2,000 votes in the runoff election. 

Secretary of State Cole Jester said Fox’s ruling showed the state’s election process works and thanked county election officials for their work. 

“Arkansas has built a system voters can trust, and this decision brings confirmation of an election that was repeatedly verified,” he said in a statement. 

Hammer did not immediately respond to a phone message requesting comment Monday. Hammer will face Democrat Kelly Grappe and Libertarian Michael Pakko in the November general election.

Advocate reporter Tess Vrbin contributed to this report.