Below are remarks delivered by Pulaski County and Circuit Clerk Terri Hollingsworth as she announced her re-election campaign.
Today, as I am flanked by my mother and my son, I’m excited to announce my reelection campaign.
Serving as your Pulaski County Circuit and County Clerk has been the honor of my life, and I cannot thank you enough for the chance to serve our community.
We accomplished a lot in my first term. And though we experienced some incredible—and unprecedented—adversity, we succeeded. Together, we made our county a better place to vote, a better place to run a business, and above all — we made Pulaski County a better place to live and raise a family.
The pandemic challenged our 90 plus person staff in this building. But their strength and their leadership met the moment. We supported businesses countywide with essential records management and adaptive filing processes. And I want to thank the staff for their hard work as we continue to navigate through this storm.
With your incredible support, we established one of the most innovative and accessible voting methods in our history. Our office established and managed our drive-thru absentee ballot drop off process — a new voting method that thousands of our neighbors, our friends, our parents, and our grandparents used to cast their vote in 2020.
Today, my message for our future is simple: this work is just getting started.
In 2018, our campaign received more votes than any other candidate on the Pulaski County ballot. That success is because we engaged voters in every part of our county — and across our 137 precincts.
This campaign will build on that success and expand our vote share. As we talk to communities countywide about our work this term, we will register hundreds of newvoters and engage business owners to learn what additional resources they need as we finally put this pandemic in our rearview mirror.
This work will not be easy. We have seen barriers erected to make voting more difficult and more erroneous. This campaign will devote resources and energy to ensure Pulaski County continues to have one of the most educated voting communities.
Just recently, I learned about a case that shows how deeply terrible these new voting laws are. During this last legislative session, our lawmakers changed the time frame for when an absentee ballot is due and the time frame for requesting an absentee ballot.
As you know, Little Rock has a special election tomorrow, September 14th - and early voting started this past Tuesday. This case focuses on a Little Rock couple in quarantine because of exposure to COVID-19. That mandated quarantine started on Thursday. So sadly, they didn’t get a chance to vote early. Because they were unaware of the new voting laws, they didn’t request nor submit an absentee on Friday which was the deadline. They will not be able to vote in this election.
This case is sadly not unique - they are likely dozens of families affected in a similar way.
This law is wrong. This law is already limiting our citizen’s ability to participate in our elections.
Sadly, our office cannot change that law. However, this campaign can -- and will -- make sure that voters, including newly registered voters -- are educated on these laws and are able to exercise their right to vote and be heard.
We will do everything we can to ensure no one is turned away from the polls because of these laws.
This 2022 campaign will be an extension of my service in this office. The same commitment, passion, and energy that I bring to this office and this building every day will be the same values that drive our campaign.
I cannot wait to serve another term as your Pulaski County Circuit and County Clerk. Thank you!
