Steve Brawner, © 2026 by Steve Brawner Communications, Inc.

Voters in Arkansas are casting primary election ballots that are probably several offices longer than they should be. 

Certain offices should definitely be elected: governor, members of Congress, mayors, city council members, county judges, quorum court members, and school boards. 

These offices either make the laws voters live under, or they have ultimate authority in administering government as the chief executive, or, in school boards’ case, they set policies for taxpayer-funded public schools. They should answer directly to the governed.

On the other hand, voters shouldn’t elect offices that perform a specific, bureaucratic function. It’s not our role, and we often don’t have enough information about the office or the candidates.

At the state level, that includes the state auditor and state treasurer, where the incumbents, Dennis Milligan and John Thurston, respectively, don’t have opponents. 

It’s also the land commissioner, where the Republican primary pits Secretary of State Cole Jester against Christian Olson. That office’s main role is collecting delinquent property taxes once the county collector (also on the ballot) is unsuccessful. It’s an important responsibility, but it’s a job, not a policymaking position. Arkansas is one of only five states that elects it. 

Also on the ballot is a Supreme Court contest featuring current Justice Nick Bronni and John Adams. 

Should these be elected positions where candidates collect campaign donations from the same groups and lawyers who could have cases before them in court? That’s how we do it now.

My Saline County ballot also includes two law enforcers: county sheriff and constable.

Sheriffs are one of the most important offices in government, but should they be elected? Voters don’t elect city police chiefs. Don’t they do mostly the same thing?

Constables, on the other hand, probably shouldn’t exist. These are rural law enforcement officers who operate independently from the sheriff. Most counties do not provide funding for the position. 

Many other county positions also are on the ballot this year, although they are unopposed on my ballot. These include assessor, county clerk, collector, treasurer – even the coroner, who determines causes of death. 

If all of these positions were contested, the ballot would be pages long. Voters would have a difficult time making informed choices. There probably would be a lot of guessing. 

What’s the alternative to electing some of these positions? The bureaucratic functionaries mentioned earlier could simply be hired by governors, county judges and mayors, just as those executives fill many other positions. Perhaps county judges should also hire sheriffs. Voters would hold these various positions accountable through the chief executive, as occurs at the presidential level. We don’t elect the secretary of defense, but if he or she becomes a political liability, most presidents will probably fire them.

What about judicial positions such as the Arkansas Supreme Court? The obvious alternative is to adopt the national model, where the president nominates and the Senate confirms.

That option, if adopted in Arkansas, would give governors more power than we may want them to have. So here’s one idea for selecting them and maybe some other positions that would retain power in the citizenry but ensure those citizens are informed.

There are circumstances where a small number of average citizens directly make extremely consequential decisions – even life and death ones.

It’s when they sit on juries. 

So what if, just as citizens have jury duty, they also had “voter duty”? What if, for some of these positions such as Supreme Court justices, a relatively small number of voters were summoned to their county courthouses or the State Capitol? They might spend a day or two hearing the candidates make their case. They could meet them face to face and hear from character witnesses. They would be given ample information in a controlled, focused environment.

In other words, they would be making a choice, not a guess. Wouldn’t that be better than relying on 30-second ads, splashy mail pieces and yard signs?

It’s just an idea. What changes would you make to the electoral system?

Let’s close by noting that we’re doing is working OK, so we shouldn’t change it too much. As Winston Churchill once said, “Indeed, it has been said that democracy is the worst form of government except for all those other forms that have been tried from time to time.”

So even though the system isn’t perfect, let’s be among the 20-25% of Arkansas voters who will participate from now through March 3.

Vote. Including for the county coroner. However that position is chosen, it’s best to have a good one.

Steve Brawner’s column is syndicated to 21 outlets in Arkansas. Email him at brawnersteve@mac.com.