Halter wins Dem. runoff for Ark. Lt. Gov, Shoffner wins treasurer's runoff
LITTLE ROCK (AP) -- Former Clinton administration official Bill Halter - who abandonded a short-lived bid for governor to run for lieutenant governor - defeated state Sen. Tim Wooldridge in a runoff Tuesday for the Democratic Party's nomination to the state's Number 2 elected position.
A spokesman for Wooldridge said the state senator called Halter shortly before 10 p.m. to concede and to congratulate his opponent.
"Tonight we celebrate a great victory for a message of hope and a positive agenda for the state of Arkansas," Halter told supporters gathered for an election-watch party.
In the Democratic runoff for attorney general, state Rep. Dustin McDaniel appeared to have won over North Little Rock city attorney Paul Suskie with almost all of the vote counted. But Suskie pinned his hopes on the tabulation of votes in populous Saline County, where equipment problems halted the tabulation until Wednesday.
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Meanwhile, former state Rep. Martha Shoffner defeated Mac Campbell, a former aide to U.S. Sen. Blanche Lincoln, for the Democratic nomination for state treasurer.
With 97 percent of 2,515 precincts reporting unofficial results, Halter had 56 percent of the vote while his opponent, state Sen. Tim Wooldridge of Paragould had 44. Halter will face Republican state Sen. Jim Holt of Springdale in the Nov. 7 election.
Halter, 45, joined the lieutenant governor's race in March after dropping his campaign for governor against fellow Democrat Attorney General Mike Beebe. Halter said he dropped out of the race because he didn't wage to wage a negative campaign against Beebe.
Wooldridge, 46, has served in the Senate since 1999 and served eight years in the House before that.
The final days of the campaign for the state's Number 2 spot turned acrimonious, with daily attacks exchanged between Halter and Wooldridge.
Halter portrayed his victory Tuesday as a rejection of Wooldridge's criticism of him.
"Voters prefer substance over the politics of personal destruction," Halter said. "From the very beginning, my campaign put out a number of policy positions that were very detailed and I think that's one key to our success."
Halter targeted Wooldridge for his unsuccessful 1995 proposal to reinstate public hangings and for his vote against increasing a tax exemption for servicemen. Wooldridge said he regretted the public hanging measure and said he voted against the tax break because of a tight budget year and an ongoing school funding case.
Wooldridge accused Halter of profiting from pornography and online gambling because he sits on the board of Akamai Technologies, Inc., which once did business with adult oriented sites. Halter has replied that the company now has a policy against doing business with those types of Web sites.
Wooldridge said he would support Halter in the general election and said he didn't believe Halter's campaign would be hurt by the fractious primary and runoff campaigns.
"After the battle is over, we as a party mend and move forward," Wooldridge said. "It's about serving the citizens of Arkansas."
Halter said he will present a contrast between his ideas and Holt in the general election campaign and cited the senator's opposition to an increase in the minimum wage.
Holt said he was excited about facing off with Halter in the election, who he described as tied to "out-of-state special interests." Holt said he'll continue focusing his campaign on restricting state services for illegal immigrants.
In the Democratic runoff for attorney general, with 97 percent of the precincts reporting, McDaniel had 51 of the vote and Suskie had 49 percent, with 95 percent of the precincts reporting.
"It's going to be a nail biter," McDaniel said. "It's been an honor and a privelege to wage this campaign."
McDaniel, 34, is a state representative from Jonesboro and a former police officer. Paul Suskie, 35, is North Little Rock's city attorney and served in Afghanistan last year as a major in the Arkansas National Guard Judge Advocate General Corps.
Suskie said he expected results from Saline County to give him a boost. Saline County Prosecutor Robert Herzfeld, who finished third in the May 23 primary, endorsed Suskie's bid for attorney general.
"It's as close as we thought, and this could be the closest race in Arkansas history," Suskie said. "We're closing the gap."
The winner of Tuesday's runoff will face Republican Gunner DeLay, a former state senator from Fort Smith who had no opposition in the May primary.
Shoffner won the Democratic nomination by claiming 54 percent of the votes with 97 percent of the precincts reporting. Campbell claimed 46 percent.
Shoffner, 61, is a real estate agent from from Newport and a former state representative and Campbell, 32, is a former aide to U.S. Sen. Blanche Lincoln.
Shoffner, a former assistant state auditor, said she believed her background in state government helped her in the runoff against Campbell.
"I'm very familiar with the system," Shoffner said."Once we win in November, I think it will be a good transition."
Shoffner will face Republican Chris Morris, an extradition officer on Gov. Mike Huckabee's executive clemency staff, in November.
Runoffs were also held Tuesday for seven state House seats and one Senate seat.
The Arkansas secretary of state's office last week predicted 14 percent of the state's 1.65 million registered voters will cast a vote Tuesday. Turnout in the May 23 primary was about 21 percent, lower than the 28 percent originally predicted.
Voting in Tuesday's runoff started off smoothly, but 10 counties chose not to use federally mandated electronic voting machines, state election officials said. Another county, Stone, gave up on the touch-screen machines because election workers were unable to access the electronic ballots.