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UPDATED APRIL 7, 2026
Voters in Saline County returned to the polls March 31 for a Republican primary runoff that decided the next Sheriff – but also produced what one candidate called “a razor-thin” result in the race for Arkansas Secretary of State. That candidate requested recounts from several counties. Read more below.
WHY
Runoff elections are required when no candidate receives a majority (50% plus one vote) in the initial primary. Following our recent March 3rd primary, two Republican races in Saline County advanced to a runoff – Saline County Sheriff and Arkansas Secretary of State.
SHERIFF
In the local sheriff’s race, voters selected Dustin Robertson over Richard Friend, giving Robertson a clear victory. Robertson received 4,768 votes (68.80%), while Friend received 2,162 votes (31.20%), according to the Saline County Clerk’s summary report.
SECRETARY OF STATE
The statewide race for Secretary of State was much closer. Senator Kim Hammer secured the Republican nomination with 50.57% of the vote, totaling 40,920 votes. Bryan Norris received 49.43%, or 40,002 votes. The margin between the two candidates was 910 votes statewide.
RECOUNT
The Norris campaign announced on the morning of April 2nd that they filed petitions for a recount in multiple counties, citing the narrow margin.
According to Bryan Norris in a phone call April 2nd, there may be more counties to come, but the following are the six counties where they filed:
Baxter – Fri, April 3, 1pm – Waylan Cooper SBEC –This recount produced the same result.
Grant – Mon, April 6, 9am – Chris Madison – SBEC–This recount produced the same result.
Washington – Mon, April 6, 10am – Charlie Morris SBEC–This recount produced the same result.
White – Mon, April 6, 10am – Jon Davidson – SBEC–This recount produced the same result.
Saline – Tue, April 7, 9am – Chris Madison and Charlie Morris – SBEC–This recount produced the same result.
Miller – Thu, April 9, 11am – Charlie Morris SBEC
In a statement, the campaign said, “The margin in this race was razor thin. You deserve to know that every vote was counted correctly.”
A large part of Norris’ campaign has been his advocacy for paper ballots in elections.
A candidate cannot ask for a recount statewide, it must be done by county. Trevor Villines, Communications Director for Saline County, confirms Saline County is one of them.
Election officials note that a 2024 post-election audit by the Arkansas State Board of Election Commissioners found Saline County’s vote tabulation to be 100% accurate.
They also point out that candidates requesting a recount are responsible for covering the cost.
The Saline County recount took place Tuesday, April 7th at 9:00 a.m. at the “Vote Here” building at Conway and Main Streets in downtown Benton. The process was open to the public.
When this runoff election result is officially decided and certified, the winner must still face two other candidates in the General Election on November 3, 2026. Kelly Grappe is the Democratic candidate, and there is a Libertarian candidate, Michael Pakko. Three candidates means there is the possibility of yet another runoff in November.
Election officials encourage voters to review their voter registration information and sample ballot before heading to the polls.
Here’s the link to register to vote: www.sos.arkansas.gov/elections/voter-information.
Here’s the link to check your voter registration to be sure it’s the correct name and address: www.voterview.ar-nova.org/voterview.
See the main page for Elections at https://www.mysaline.com/2026-elections.
The Bryan Norris campaign also issued a press release on Thursday, as follows:
NORRIS CAMPAIGN FILES FORMAL PETITIONS FOR RECOUNT IN MULTIPLE ARKANSAS COUNTIES
Batesville, Arkansas — Bryan Norris, candidate for Arkansas Secretary of State in the March 31, 2026 Republican Primary Runoff, announced today that his campaign has filed formal Petitions for Recount in multiple Arkansas counties pursuant to Ark. Code § 7-5-319.
The petitions request that each respective County Board of Election Commissioners conduct a full recount of all ballots cast in the Secretary of State race, verify duplicated ballots and tabulated totals, produce all materials related to the election, and manually compile and certify the results of the recount as required by Arkansas law.
“This is not about being a sore loser,” said Norris. “This is about the voters of Arkansas who deserve to know with absolute certainty that every ballot was counted correctly. When a race is decided by a fraction of a percentage point, the law provides a process for verification. We are using that process exactly as it was intended.”
The margin in the March 31 runoff was less than one percentage point statewide. The Norris campaign, which finished first across all 75 Arkansas counties in the March 3 primary with over 90,000 votes, ran an entirely grassroots operation against a campaign backed by the sitting Governor, the Lieutenant Governor, a United States Senator, the current Secretary of State, and a significant portion of the Arkansas Legislature. Independent spending against the Norris campaign in the 30-day runoff period exceeded half a million dollars.
“Our supporters drove over 44,000 miles with us across this state,” Norris continued. “They knocked doors, donated their hard-earned money, gave their time, and cast their votes. They deserve a process that is fully transparent and fully verified. That is all we are asking for. That is all we have ever asked for.”
The petitions were filed by Norris’s legal counsel, Clinton W. Lancaster of Clint Lancaster & Co., LLC, Little Rock, Arkansas, and were submitted within the time allowed by Arkansas law. Norris acknowledges, as required by statute, that the costs of the recount are to be borne by the petitioning candidate, subject to refund if the outcome of the election is altered by the recount.
Norris has been a consistent and vocal advocate for election integrity and transparency throughout his campaign, including his filing of a class action lawsuit defending paper ballot rights in Independence County and his opposition to SB250, which he argued shielded voting machine source code from public scrutiny and penalized counties that chose paper ballots.
“Election integrity is not a talking point for us,” said Norris. “It is the reason this campaign existed. We will see this process through to the end.”
The Norris campaign encourages supporters to stay engaged and to visit cfc75.com to join the Conduit Freedom Caucus and continue the work of this movement beyond this election cycle.
Watch MySaline.com/2026-elections-primary-runoff-recount for updates on this race.
Return to the main page for 2026 Election info at www.mysaline.com/2026-elections.
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