By Rob Moritz
Arkansas News Bureau

LITTLE ROCK — Last year’s mayoral election in Pine Bluff was the impetus for legislation that has sparked debate in the Legislature over the need to limit the potential for runoffs in some municipal elections.

House Bill 1393 by Rep. Tommy Baker, D-Osceola, would amend state law requiring a runoff in local elections where no candidate receives than 50 percent of the vote. It would eliminate a runoff in races with multiple candidate if the top vote-getter receives at least 40 percent of the vote and 20 percent more votes than the second-place finisher.

“We talk about city government spending, and this is one of the end uses that costs money,” Baker said. “In my opinion this will save cities money.”

The House has approved the bill, but the Senate voted it down last week after some members suggested it favored incumbents and would disenfranchise voters. Some lawmakers also questioned why the proposed change was even necessary.

After defeated the measure on a 7-12 vote last week, the Senate expunged the vote, meaning it could be brought back for consideration. Sen. Jack Crumbly, D-Widener, who presented the bill on the Senate floor, said he would bring the bill back later.

Last year, Pine Bluff Mayor Carl A. Redus Jr. was among six candidates in the city’s mayoral primary and came within one vote of reclaiming the office outright. But because Redus received exactly 50 percent of the vote, not 50 percent plus one, a runoff was called against the closest challenger, City Treasurer Greg Gustek, who received 29 percent of the primary vote.

Redus defeated Gustek in the runoff with nearly 60 percent of the vote.

Baker, a former Osceola alderman and a past president of the Arkansas Municipal League, said he watched the Pine Bluff runoff with interest because for several years he had thought some runoff elections were a waste of taxpayer money.

Until the mid-1980s, cities were not required to hold runoff elections. The candidate with the most votes won city races. The Legislature changed the law to require a 50 percent plus one majority and provided for a runoff, if needed.

Baker said the Pine Bluff runoff convinced him some change was needed. Aside from costing cities money, runoffs historically draw few voters, he said.

“So we’re trying to keep voter participation up,” Baker said, adding his proposal would also weed out the not-so-serious candidates.

“In my opinion, if people run in an election they should try and win … they shouldn’t be playing the game for the runoff,” he said. “You often see these races where five or six people run and five of them get less than five percent of the vote.”

His bill has the backing of the Arkansas Municipal League.

But during the Senate debate last week, Sen. Sue Madison, D-Fayetteville, said the measure would favor officeholders seeking re-election.

“This would make it extremely difficult to defeat an incumbent,” Madison said.

Sen. Jerry Taylor, D-Pine Bluff, suggested it was un-democratic.

“If somebody receives 40 percent … that means that 60 percent favor somebody else,” Taylor said. “We ought not to save a few dollars … while doing away with the democratic process.”

“What are we trying to fix in this particular situation?” asked Sen. Bill Pritchard, R-Elkins. “This is not a big problem.”