On November 5, Libertarian Party nominee Frank Gilbert was elected Constable of Big Rock Township, Pulaski County, Arkansas. Big Rock Township is one of only two townships in Pulaski County. Pulaski County is the most populous county in Arkansas. Big Rock Township contains Little Rock and has about 60% of the county population.
The race was a two-person contest between Gilbert and the Republican nominee, Walter Stoermer. Gilbert received 43,691 votes, or 58.48%.
Big Rock Township is the most populous jurisdiction that has ever elected a Libertarian in a partisan race. The previous high point for Libertarians winning partisan races came in 2019, when Libertarian nominee Michael Korchak was elected District Attorney of Broome County, New York. Korchak was the noominee of no other party in that election. Thanks to Art DiBianca for this news. Here is a link to the election returns. Scroll down to about the middle.
Here is Gilbert’s campaign website.
As far as is known, the last time a minor party won a partisan office in Arkansas was in 2012, when Green Party nominee Fred Smith was elected to the legislature. However, he had no ballot-listed opponents, just a write-in opponent.
As a member of the American Solidarity Party in Arkansas, a big congratulations to my Libertarian counterparts.
Frank Gilbert had previously been elected as a Libertarian to the office of Constable. I think the last time Frank Gilbert was elected as a Libertarian Constable it was in a different part of the state, possibly around Jonesboro.
There is at least one other Libertarian who got elected to the office of Constable in Arkansas (I think his name is Jacob Faught).
Sounds like it has about the power and importance of dog catcher.
Meanwhile, libertarian leaning Trump was elected President.
Trump 47 will be the most libertarian President ever! Even more libertarian than Trump 45!
Ah yes, because libertarians are famously anti-lgbt, anti-women, anti-minority, and anti-human rights.
“some dude” = Robert K Stock
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Constable
C = COP IN SMALLER POP AREAS IN STATES
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sheriff
OLDE SHIRE REEF IN OLDE ENGLAND
CONSTABLES UNDER SHERIFF — SOME COURT OFFICERS – WARRANTS – ARREST / PROPERTY
https://statisticalatlas.com/county-subdivision/Arkansas/Pulaski-County/Big-Rock-Township/Overview#google_vignette
ANY AR DIAMOND MINES IN THE TWP ???
Congratulations to Frank Gilbert and Big Rock Township, Arkansas! He has a nice website and he sounds personable and friendly.
In 2012, Michael Graves, Democratic constable for Black Rock Township said that he did what other constables told him to do, “do nothing”. The newspaper in giving him their endorsement contrasted with the constable in Hill Township, the other township in Pulaski County, who had tried to get the county to buy him a vehicle to perform his non-duties. Graves who was first elected in 2006, apparently did not file for re-election in 2024 (apparently because there were no news of his not filing). He may be close to 80, but I did not find an obituary.
Black Rock Township is overwhelmingly Democratic, it appears that Democratic voters when confronted with a choice between a Libertarian, a Republican, and skip the race, voted for the non-Republican. Among Democrat voters, it appears that the Republican finished third in a two-candidate race behind NOTA.
https://independentpoliticalreport.com/2015/04/jacob-faught-being-a-libertarian-leo/
Jacob Faught on serving as a constable in Arkansas