By Steve Brawner, © 2019 by Steve Brawner Communications, Inc.

A billionaire businessman and former New York City mayor flew to Little Rock to file his presidential candidacy paperwork at the Capitol Tuesday, and that wasn’t the most unexpected event on the last day of campaign filing.

Michael Bloomberg, 77, was the only major presidential candidate to file in person. He has openly flirted with running for president for years but has never pulled the trigger. But he really doesn’t approve of his fellow billionaire New Yorker, President Donald Trump, and has been critical of the Democratic field.

Bloomberg had filed in Alabama, which like Arkansas has a ridiculously early filing period, but Arkansas was the first state where he did it in person. His appearance wasn’t previously announced, but word began to spread that morning, and reporters and onlookers were waiting when he arrived. He paid his $2,500 filing fee to the Democratic Party of Arkansas, filed his paperwork, had his picture taken, and then spoke briefly with reporters. He did not confirm he is running for president but did say he was “the only candidate to come here.” If he’s not a candidate, he’s doing a great impression of one.

Bloomberg wasn’t the only major party candidate to file Tuesday. Former Massachusetts Gov. William Weld filed in the Republican Party primary against Trump. Weld is an announced candidate and had been talking to the state party, so his decision, though notable, wasn’t a complete surprise.

While some other states have put roadblocks in front of Trump’s opponents, Republican Party of Arkansas Chairman Doyle Webb was happy to take Weld’s $25,000. The Republicans charge presidential candidates 10 times more than the Democrats, billionaires or not, much to the chagrin of Democratic Party of Arkansas Chairman Michael John Gray. His party could have used the money, but its fees are set nationally while the Republicans determine their ballot access requirement at the state level.

Later that morning, Democrats finally officially landed their candidate in the 2nd Congressional District. Of Arkansas’ four districts, that’s where Democrats at least have a shot because it includes Little Rock, a remaining bastion of support. But the party had struggled to recruit an opponent for Rep. French Hill, the Republican incumbent.

Gray had been saying since late last week that the party had found a candidate, so the fact that someone filed was not unexpected. The party didn’t announce who it was, but word gets out. State Sen. Joyce Elliott, D-Little Rock, filed at 11 a.m. She previously ran for Congress in 2010, a disastrous year for Arkansas Democrats when she tallied 38% against Tim Griffin, now the lieutenant governor.

Elliott’s candidacy wasn’t expected coming into the filing period, but it wasn’t shocking. She’s an outspoken liberal and supporter of returning Little Rock schools to local control, and she’s one of the most recognizable state legislators. But Arkansas is now firmly a Republican state, and Little Rock is ringed by very Republican areas. So anyone watching the race would expect Hill to win.

Then things took a truly unexpected turn – in fact, a weird one. At 2:16 p.m., the Democrats’ only announced U.S. Senate candidate, Josh Mahony, abruptly announced on Twitter that he was quitting his race against Sen. Tom Cotton. He cited only a “family health concern” and asked for privacy.

Mahony had been running an active campaign. A little more than an hour before withdrawing, he’d tweeted his enthusiastic support for Elliott. Then suddenly he was out. But there was this: Shortly after the filing period ended, the state Republican Party had filed a Federal Election Commission complaint accusing him of falsifying campaign finance reports. As reported by the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette, he’d had numerous issues with those reports.

Mahony hadn’t told Gray he was withdrawing, and the timing left the party without a candidate to oppose Cotton. Democrats are studying their options, but Republicans are confident they can’t replace him under the law and have threatened to sue if Democrats try to nominate anyone. The law seems to be on the Republicans’ side. Besides, who would the Democrats run?

So the filing period has ended and the campaign season – a year of it – has begun. Expect lots of mud to be thrown. More heat will be generated than light shone. At times it will be ugly.

But then on Nov. 3, 2020, we’ll vote. Not everyone in the world can expect that.

Steve Brawner is a syndicated columnist in Arkansas. Email him at brawnersteve@mac.com. Follow him on Twitter at @stevebrawner.