By Jason Tolbert

Arkansas Lt. Gov. Bill Halter has not had a conventional path in Arkansas politics and odds are the trend will continue.

Before 2006, Halter was unknown outside of political-insider circles. Today, he is one of the most well-known statewide elected officials. And now many are wondering if he is on the verge of parlaying this from the state Capitol to the U.S. Capitol.

Halter first came on the scene as he considered making a run for the governor’s office following the term-limited Republican Gov. Mike Huckabee, but he was persuaded, perhaps begrudgingly, to set his sights instead on the lieutenant governor’s office. He survived a four-way Democratic primary, including a runoff against party favorite Tim Wooldridge, followed by a November win over Republican Jim Holt. His campaign hit mainly on a single issue, spearheading the effort to bring a lottery focused on funding college scholarships for Arkansas students.

Unlike many politicians, Halter delivered on his promise. In 2008, he used his office to be the spokesman for what would become the Arkansas Scholarship Lottery. Offering Arkansas a clean amendment, without casinos or any for-profit gambling enterprises that weighed down previous lottery proposals, Halter received the green light from an overwhelming majority of voters.

Looking back over his first term in office, Halter tells me he agrees that passing the lottery was his most significant accomplishment. He believes this will have a positive impact not only on families with children wanting to go to college but also on the Arkansas economy as the work force becomes more educated.

But looking ahead to his next term in office, Halter declined to get into specifics of what he might accomplish. He did say that he and his staff will “continue to look for areas that have a high strategic impact on Arkansas.” He mentioned continued work on the lottery, on programs such as free health clinics, and on early childhood education.

The biggest question with Halter is the mounting speculation on whether he will launch a Democratic primary challenge to incumbent Sen. Blanche Lincoln. Perhaps one reason is that Halter has been a strong advocate for health care reform at a time in which Sen. Lincoln has wavered. He says he is pleased with the progress Congress is making and will be closely watching what the final proposal looks like. He hopes to see legislation that, among other things, increases coverage for uninsured Arkansans.

Halter also has been meeting with labor union groups, which by all appearances strongly support a Halter for Senate campaign. This month, the labor union group SEIU paid down  Halter’s existing campaign debt from 2006, which was around $445,000 at the most recent filing.

But when asked about his future, Halter continued to tell me to stay tuned. “While folks have encouraged that I run for the Senate, I have listened very respectfully, but my focus has been on raising funds for re-election,” said Halter.

Republican Mark Darr, currently the only announced GOP candidate for lieutenant governor, says he is not too concerned either way. “I believe that I can run a strong campaign focused on conservative issues regardless of who is the Democratic nominee,” said Darr.

It is anyone’s guess if Halter will take the gamble and challenge Sen. Lincoln or play it safe and focus on keeping his current office.

The smart money is on him staying put. That’s just for now. It is a safe bet that his political future in Arkansas will continue to be an interesting journey.

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Jason Tolbert is an accountant and conservative political blogger. His blog — The Tolbert Report — is linked at ArkansasNews.com. His e-mail is jason@TolbertReport.com.