On December 30, Garland Trice, a Democrat who wants to run for Justice of the Peace in Jefferson County, Arkansas, filed a lawsuit in state court to get on the primary ballot.  The deadline in Arkansas for 2026 for primary candidates was noon on November 11, 2025.  Trice was in the election office at 11:35 a.m. that day.  Partisan primary candidates first file with their party, and then complete filing with the county elections office.  The county says he entered the latter office at 12:02 pm, and refused to acknowledge that he had met the deadline.  He says he entered at 11:59 am and no one was at the counter to date-stamp his paperwork.

See this story.  Arkansas has the 2nd earliest primary filing deadline of any state for 2026.  Only Illinois has an earlier deadline for primary candidates.  Arkansas, Illinois, North Carolina and Texas have March 3, 2026 primary dates.