United States congressional delegations from Arkansas
Since Arkansas became a U.S. state in 1836, it has sent congressional delegations to the United States Senate and United States House of Representatives, beginning with the 25th United States Congress in 1837, with the exception of the Civil War period between the 37th United States Congress in 1861 and the 40th United States Congress in 1868, when Arkansas' congressional delegations were sent to the Confederate States Congress instead.[1][2] Before becoming a state, the Arkansas Territory elected a non-voting delegate at-large to Congress, beginning with the 16th United States Congress in 1819.[3] Each state elects two senators to serve for six years in general elections, with their re-election staggered. Prior to the ratification of the Seventeenth Amendment in 1913, senators were elected by the Arkansas General Assembly.[4] Each state elects a varying number of, but at least one,[5] member of the House, depending on population, to two-year terms.[6] Arkansas has sent four members to the House in each congressional delegation since the 1960 United States census.[7]
Current delegation
[edit]Arkansas
|
Class II senator | Class III senator | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 Tom Cotton (Junior senator) (Little Rock) |
.jpg) John Boozman (Senior senator) (Rogers) | |||
| Party | Republican | Republican | ||
| Incumbent since | January 3, 2015 | January 3, 2011 |
Arkansas's current congressional delegation in the 119th Congress consists of its two senators, and four representatives, all of whom are Republicans.
The current dean of the Arkansas delegation is Senator John Boozman, having served in the Senate since 2011 and in the U.S. Congress since 2001.
| District | Member (Residence)[9] |
Party | Incumbent since | CPVI (2022)[10] |
District map |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1st |  Rick Crawford (Jonesboro) |
Republican | January 3, 2011 | R+22 | .svg)
|
| 2nd |  French Hill (Little Rock) |
Republican | January 3, 2015 | R+9 | .svg)
|
| 3rd |  Steve Womack (Rogers) |
Republican | January 3, 2011 | R+15 | .svg)
|
| 4th |  Bruce Westerman (Hot Springs) |
Republican | January 3, 2015 | R+20 | .svg)
|
United States Senate
[edit]
.jpg)
.jpg)
35 people have served as a U.S. senator from Arkansas, consisting of 33 men and two women, as well as 28 Democrats and 7 Republicans.[11] Two, William K. Sebastian and Charles B. Mitchel, were expelled from the Senate because of Arkansas' secession from the Union at the start of the American Civil War; Sebastian was the only senator from a Confederate state to later be reinstated, albeit posthumously.[12] After her husband's death in office, Hattie Caraway, became the first to be elected to a full term in the Senate after finishing his term.[13] The longest-serving senator from Arkansas, John L. McClellan, chaired many Senate committees during his 34 years in office, including the Senate Committee on Government Operations and the Senate Appropriations Committee.[11][14] For some time, he served with J. William Fulbright, known for the Fulbright Program, establishing an American student exchange program; his chairing of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, resulting in the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution and Fulbright hearings; and his opposition to the civil rights movement.[15][16] Other senators from Arkansas also served in leadership roles in the Senate, including Joseph T. Robinson, who served as Senate Majority Leader,[17] and Ambrose Sevier and James P. Clarke, who both served as president pro tempore of the Senate.[2]
Senators are elected every six years depending on their class, with each senator serving a six-year term and elections for senators occurring every two years; the class up for re-election rotates such that each election, around one-third of the seats in the Senate are up for election.[18] Arkansas' senators are elected in classes II and III. Currently, Arkansas is represented in the Senate by Tom Cotton and John Boozman.[19]
Democratic (D) Jacksonian (J) Republican (R)
| Class II senator | Congress | Class III senator | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| William S. Fulton (J) | 24th (1835–1837) | Ambrose H. Sevier (J) | ||
| William S. Fulton (D)[a] | 25th (1837–1839) | Ambrose H. Sevier (D)[b] | ||
| 26th (1839–1841) | ||||
| 27th (1841–1843) | ||||
| 28th (1843–1845) | ||||
| Chester Ashley (D)[c] | ||||
| 29th (1845–1847) | ||||
| 30th (1847–1849) | ||||
| William K. Sebastian (D)[d] | Solon Borland (D)[e] | |||
| 31st (1849–1851) | ||||
| 32nd (1851–1853) | ||||
| 33rd (1853–1855) | ||||
| Robert Ward Johnson (D) | ||||
| 34th (1855–1857) | ||||
| 35th (1857–1859) | ||||
| 36th (1859–1861) | ||||
| 37th (1861–1863) | Charles B. Mitchel (D)[f] | |||
| vacant[g] | vacant[g][h] | |||
| 38th (1863–1865) | ||||
| 39th (1865–1867) | ||||
| 40th (1867–1869) | ||||
| Alexander McDonald (R) | Benjamin F. Rice (R) | |||
| 41st (1869–1871) | ||||
| Powell Clayton (R) | 42nd (1871–1873) | |||
| 43rd (1873–1875) | Stephen W. Dorsey (R) | |||
| 44th (1875–1877) | ||||
| Augustus H. Garland (D)[i] | 45th (1877–1879) | |||
| 46th (1879–1881) | James D. Walker (D) | |||
| 47th (1881–1883) | ||||
| 48th (1883–1885) | ||||
| 49th (1885–1887) | James K. Jones (D) | |||
| James H. Berry (D) | ||||
| 50th (1887–1889) | ||||
| 51st (1889–1891) | ||||
| 52nd (1891–1893) | ||||
| 53rd (1893–1895) | ||||
| 54th (1895–1897) | ||||
| 55th (1897–1899) | ||||
| 56th (1899–1901) | ||||
| 57th (1901–1903) | ||||
| 58th (1903–1905) | James P. Clarke (D)[j] | |||
| 59th (1905–1907) | ||||
| Jeff Davis (D)[k] | 60th (1907–1909) | |||
| 61st (1909–1911) | ||||
| 62nd (1911–1913) | ||||
| John N. Heiskell (D)[l] | ||||
| William M. Kavanaugh (D) | ||||
| Joseph T. Robinson (D)[m] | 63rd (1913–1915) | |||
| 64th (1915–1917) | ||||
| William F. Kirby (D) | ||||
| 65th (1917–1919) | ||||
| 66th (1919–1921) | ||||
| 67th (1921–1923) | Thaddeus H. Caraway (D)[n] | |||
| 68th (1923–1925) | ||||
| 69th (1925–1927) | ||||
| 70th (1927–1929) | ||||
| 71st (1929–1931) | ||||
| 72nd (1931–1933) | ||||
| Hattie Caraway (D) | ||||
| 73rd (1933–1935) | ||||
| 74th (1935–1937) | ||||
| 75th (1937–1939) | ||||
| John E. Miller (D)[o] | ||||
| 76th (1939–1941) | ||||
| 77th (1941–1943) | ||||
| Lloyd Spencer (D) | ||||
| John L. McClellan (D)[p] | 78th (1943–1945) | |||
| 79th (1945–1947) | J. William Fulbright (D)[q] | |||
| 80th (1947–1949) | ||||
| 81st (1949–1951) | ||||
| 82nd (1951–1953) | ||||
| 83rd (1953–1955) | ||||
| 84th (1955–1957) | ||||
| 85th (1957–1959) | ||||
| 86th (1959–1961) | ||||
| 87th (1961–1963) | ||||
| 88th (1963–1965) | ||||
| 89th (1965–1967) | ||||
| 90th (1967–1969) | ||||
| 91st (1969–1971) | ||||
| 92nd (1971–1973) | ||||
| 93rd (1973–1975) | ||||
| 94th (1975–1977) | Dale Bumpers (D) | |||
| 95th (1977–1979) | ||||
| Kaneaster Hodges Jr. (D) | ||||
| David Pryor (D) | 96th (1979–1981) | |||
| 97th (1981–1983) | ||||
| 98th (1983–1985) | ||||
| 99th (1985–1987) | ||||
| 100th (1987–1989) | ||||
| 101st (1989–1991) | ||||
| 102nd (1991–1993) | ||||
| 103rd (1993–1995) | ||||
| 104th (1995–1997) | ||||
| Tim Hutchinson (R) | 105th (1997–1999) | |||
| 106th (1999–2001) | Blanche Lincoln (D) | |||
| 107th (2001–2003) | ||||
| Mark Pryor (D) | 108th (2003–2005) | |||
| 109th (2005–2007) | ||||
| 110th (2007–2009) | ||||
| 111th (2009–2011) | ||||
| 112th (2011–2013) | John Boozman (R) | |||
| 113th (2013–2015) | ||||
| Tom Cotton (R) | 114th (2015–2017) | |||
| 115th (2017–2019) | ||||
| 116th (2019–2021) | ||||
| 117th (2021–2023) | ||||
| 118th (2023–2025) | ||||
| 119th (2025–2027) | ||||
United States House of Representatives
[edit]1819–1836: 1 non-voting delegate
[edit]The Arkansas Territory was created on July 4, 1819, and it sent a non-voting delegate to the House.
| Congress | Delegate from Territory's at-large district |
|---|---|
| 16th (1819–1821) | James Woodson Bates (I) |
| 17th (1821–1823) | |
| 18th (1823–1825) | Henry W. Conway (DR) |
| 19th (1825–1827) | |
| 20th (1827–1829) | |
| Ambrose H. Sevier (J) | |
| 21st (1829–1831) | |
| 22nd (1831–1833) | |
| 23rd (1833–1835) | |
| 24th (1835–1837) |
1836–1853: 1 seat
[edit]Following statehood on June 15, 1836, Arkansas had one seat in the House.
| Congress | At-large district |
|---|---|
| 24th (1835–1837) | Archibald Yell (J) |
| 25th (1837–1839) | Archibald Yell (D) |
| 26th (1839–1841) | Edward Cross (D) |
| 27th (1841–1843) | |
| 28th (1843–1845) | |
| 29th (1845–1847) | Archibald Yell (D) |
| Thomas Willoughby Newton (W) | |
| 30th (1847–1849) | Robert Ward Johnson (D) |
| 31st (1849–1851) | |
| 32nd (1851–1853) |
1853–1863: 2 seats
[edit]Following the 1850 census, Arkansas was apportioned two seats.
| Congress | 1st district | 2nd district |
|---|---|---|
| 33rd (1853–1855) | Alfred B. Greenwood (D) |
Edward A. Warren (D) |
| 34th (1855–1857) | Albert Rust (D) | |
| 35th (1857–1859) | Edward A. Warren (D) | |
| 36th (1859–1861) | Thomas C. Hindman (D) | Albert Rust (D) |
| 37th (1861–1863) | vacant during the Civil War[g][r] | |
1863–1873: 3 seats
[edit]Following the 1860 census, Arkansas was apportioned three seats.
| Congress | 1st district | 2nd district | 3rd district |
|---|---|---|---|
| 38–39th (1863–1865) | vacant during the Civil War and Reconstruction[g][s] | ||
| 40th (1867–1869) | |||
| Logan H. Roots (R) | James M. Hinds (R) | Thomas Boles (R) | |
| James T. Elliott (R) | |||
| 41st (1869–1871) | Anthony A. C. Rogers (D) | ||
| 42nd (1871–1873) | James M. Hanks (D) | Oliver P. Snyder (R) | John Edwards (LR) |
| Thomas Boles (R) | |||
1873–1883: 4 seats
[edit]Following the 1870 census, Arkansas was apportioned four seats.
| Congress | 1st district | 2nd district | 3rd district | At-large |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 43rd (1873–1875) | Asa Hodges (R) | Oliver P. Snyder (R) | William W. Wilshire (R) | William J. Hynes (LR) |
| Thomas M. Gunter (D) | ||||
| 44th (1875–1877) | Lucien C. Gause (D) | William F. Slemons (D) | William W. Wilshire (D) | 4th district |
| Thomas M. Gunter (D) | ||||
| 45th (1877–1879) | Jordan E. Cravens (D) | |||
| 46th (1879–1881) | Poindexter Dunn (D) | |||
| 47th (1881–1883) | James K. Jones (D) |
1883–1893: 5 seats
[edit]Following the 1880 census, Arkansas was apportioned five seats.
| Congress | 1st district | 2nd district | 3rd district | 4th district | At-large |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 48th (1883–1885) | Poindexter Dunn (D) | James K. Jones (D) | John Henry Rogers (D) | Samuel W. Peel (D) | Clifton R. Breckinridge (D) |
| 49th (1885–1887) | Clifton R. Breckinridge (D) |
vacant[t] | John Henry Rogers (D) | 5th district | |
| Thomas C. McRae (D) |
Samuel W. Peel (D) | ||||
| 50th (1887–1889) | |||||
| 51st (1889–1891) | William H. Cate (D) | ||||
| Lewis Featherstone (SL) | vacant[u] | ||||
| Clifton R. Breckinridge (D) | |||||
| 52nd (1891–1893) | William H. Cate (D) | William L. Terry (D) |
1893–1903: 6 seats
[edit]Following the 1890 census, Arkansas was apportioned six seats.
| Congress | 1st district | 2nd district | 3rd district | 4th district | 5th district | 6th district |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 53rd (1893–1895) | Philip D. McCulloch Jr. (D) |
Clifton R. Breckinridge (D) |
Thomas C. McRae (D) |
William L. Terry (D) | Hugh A. Dinsmore (D) | Robert Neill (D) |
| John S. Little (D) | ||||||
| 54th (1895–1897) | ||||||
| 55th (1897–1899) | Stephen Brundidge Jr. (D) | |||||
| 56th (1899–1901) | ||||||
| 57th (1901–1903) | Charles C. Reid (D) |
1903–1953: 7 seats
[edit]Following the 1900 census, Arkansas was apportioned seven seats.
1953–1963: 6 seats
[edit]Following the 1950 census, Arkansas was apportioned six seats.
| Congress | 1st district | 2nd district | 3rd district | 4th district | 5th district | 6th district |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 83rd (1953–1955) | Ezekiel C. Gathings (D) | Wilbur Mills (D) | James William Trimble (D) |
Oren Harris (D) | Brooks Hays (D) | William F. Norrell (D) |
| 84th (1955–1957) | ||||||
| 85th (1957–1959) | ||||||
| 86th (1959–1961) | Dale Alford (D) | |||||
| 87th (1961–1963) | ||||||
| Catherine D. Norrell (D) |
1963–present: 4 seats
[edit]Since the 1960 census, Arkansas has been apportioned four seats.
Key
[edit]| Democratic (D) |
| Democratic-Republican (DR) |
| Jacksonian (J) |
| Liberal Republican (LR) |
| Republican (R) |
| Socialist Labor (SL) |
| Whig (W) |
| Independent (I) |
See also
[edit]
- List of United States congressional districts
- Arkansas's congressional districts
- Political party strength in Arkansas
Notes
[edit]- ^ Senator Fulton died on August 15, 1844, while in office.[21]
- ^ Senator Sevier resigned in 1848, while in office, after being appointed as an American commissioner in the ratification of the Treaty of Guadalupe-Hidalgo.[22][23]
- ^ Senator Ashley died on April 29, 1848, while in office.[24]
- ^ Senator Sebastian was expelled from the Senate on July 11, 1861, on account of Arkansas' secession from the Union. He was the only senator from a Confederate state to later be symbolically reinstated, albeit posthumously, in 1877.[12]
- ^ Senator Borland was appointed by Arkansas governor Thomas S. Drew to the seat vacated by Sevier on March 30, 1848.[25] He resigned from the Senate on April 11, 1853,[26] to serve as a minister to Central America.[25][27]
- ^ Senator Mitchel was expelled from the Senate on July 11, 1861, on account of Arkansas' secession from the Union.[12]
- ^ a b c d From secession to readmission to the Union, Arkansas did not participate in the U.S. Congress.[2] Congressional representation from Arkansas was instead sent to the Confederate States Congress.[1]
- ^ Augustus Hill Garland presented credentials as a senator-elect to the 40th United States Congress in 1867 but was not permitted to serve.[28]
- ^ Senator Garland served in the Senate until 1885, when president Grover Cleveland appointed him to serve as Attorney General.[2][28]
- ^ Senator Clarke died on October 1, 1916, while serving in office and as the president pro tempore of the Senate.[29]
- ^ Senator Davis died in on January 2, 1913, while in office.[30]
- ^ Heiskell was appointed by Arkansas governor George Washington Donaghey to the seat vacated by Davis, and served until Senator Kavanaugh was elected to the seat by the Arkansas General Assembly.[30]
- ^ Senator Robinson died on July 14, 1937, while serving as Senate Majority Leader.[17]
- ^ Senator Caraway died on November 6, 1931, while in office.[13]
- ^ Senator Miller resigned on March 31, 1941, to serve as a judge on the United States District Court for the Western District of Arkansas.[31]
- ^ Senator McClellan died on November 28, 1977, while in office.[32]
- ^ Senator Fulbright resigned from the Senate on December 31, 1974.[33]
- ^ 1st district incumbent Thomas Carmichael Hindman (D) was re-elected to the 37th Congress, but chose not to take his seat.
- ^ Anthony A. C. Rogers was elected to the 38th Congress but was not permitted to take his seat because Arkansas had not been re-admitted to the Union.
- ^ McRae was elected to fill the vacancy caused by James K. Jones, who had been elected to the next term, but resigned before this Congress.
- ^ Breckinridge was initially declared elected to the 51st United States Congress and took his seat. John M. Clayton eventually won a contest before the U.S. House, but died before the contest was complete, so the House declared the seat vacant. Breckinridge was then re-elected to finish the term.
- ^ Elected to fill the vacancy caused by the previous representative's death before the term began.
References
[edit]- ^ a b Woods, James M. (1979). "Devotees and Dissenters: Arkansans in the Confederate Congress, 1861–1865". The Arkansas Historical Quarterly. 38 (3): 227–247. doi:10.2307/40023975. ISSN 0004-1823. JSTOR 40023975. Retrieved 21 January 2025.
- ^ a b c d "States in the Senate | Arkansas Timeline". United States Senate. Retrieved 21 January 2025.
- ^ Biographical directory of the United States Congress, 1774-2005: the Continental Congress, September 5, 1774, to October 21, 1788, and the Congress of the United States, from the First through the One Hundred Eighth Congresses, March 4, 1789, to January 3, 2005, inclusive (PDF). Washington, D.C.: United States Government Printing Office. 2005. p. 54. ISBN 0-16-073176-3. Retrieved April 12, 2024.
- ^ "17th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution: Direct Election of U.S. Senators (1913) | National Archives". National Archives. U.S. National Archives and Records Administration. Retrieved April 13, 2024.
- ^ Article I, Section 2 of the Constitution of United States (1787)
- ^ "Congressional elections and midterm elections". USA.gov. Archived from the original on April 6, 2024. Retrieved April 12, 2024.
- ^ "Historical Apportionment Data (1910–2020)". Census.gov. United States Census Bureau. April 26, 2021. Archived from the original on July 18, 2024. Retrieved January 10, 2025.
- ^ "2022 Cook PVI: State Map and List". Cook Political Report. Retrieved 2023-01-05.
- ^ "Office of the Clerk, U.S. House of Representatives". clerk.house.gov. Retrieved 2022-01-06.
- ^ "2022 Cook PVI: District Map and List". Cook Political Report. Retrieved 2023-01-05.
- ^ a b Roberts, Adam (15 September 2020). "History of Arkansas' US Senators". KHBS. Arkansas Hearst Television. Retrieved 22 January 2025.
- ^ a b c Butler, Anne M.; Wolff, Wendy. "36". United States Senate election, expulsion, and censure cases, 1793–1990. Washington, D.C.: Government Printing Office. Retrieved 19 January 2025.
- ^ a b Ledbetter, Calvin R. (2005). "The Other Caraway: Senator Thaddeus H. Caraway". The Arkansas Historical Quarterly. 64 (2): 123–145. doi:10.2307/40031056. ISSN 0004-1823. Retrieved 22 January 2025.
- ^ "John Little McClellan". The Washington Post. 28 November 1977. Retrieved 22 January 2025.
- ^ Woods, Randall Bennett (1995). "J. William Fulbright 1905-1995". Academe. 81 (3): 20–22. ISSN 0190-2946. Retrieved 22 January 2025.
- ^ "Chairman J. William Fulbright and the 1964 Tonkin Gulf Resolution". United States Senate. Retrieved 22 January 2025.
- ^ a b "Senator Robinson Dies Suddenly; Court Fight Thrown Into Confusion". Chattanooga Daily Times. Chattanooga, Tennessee. The Associated Press. 15 July 1937. p. 1. Retrieved 22 January 2025.
- ^ "U.S. Senate: About the Senate and the Constitution". United States Senate. Archived from the original on December 4, 2022. Retrieved April 12, 2024.
- ^ "U.S. Senate: States in the Senate | Arkansas Senators". United States Senate. Retrieved April 19, 2024.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ^ "U.S. Senate: States in the Senate | Arkansas Senators". United States Senate. Retrieved 15 January 2025.
- ^ "Death of Governor Fulton". True Democrat. Little Rock. 21 August 1844. p. 2. Retrieved 15 January 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "The Treaty Ratified". Washington Telegraph. 29 March 1848. p. 2. Retrieved 15 January 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ Reeves, Jesse S. (1905). "The Treaty of Guadalupe-Hidalgo". The American Historical Review. 10 (2): 324. doi:10.2307/1834723. ISSN 0002-8762. JSTOR 1834723. Retrieved 15 January 2025.
- ^ "Death of Senator Ashley". Washington Telegraph. Washington. 17 May 1848. p. 2. Retrieved 17 January 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ a b Woods, James M. "Solon Borland (1811–1864)". Encyclopedia of Arkansas. Central Arkansas Library System. Retrieved 17 January 2025.
- ^ "Borland, Solon". Biographical Directory of the United States Congress. Retrieved 17 January 2025.
- ^ Atkinson, J. H.; Borland, Solon (1959). "Letters from Solon Borland to Roswell Beebe". The Arkansas Historical Quarterly. 18 (3): 287–290. doi:10.2307/40019214. ISSN 0004-1823. JSTOR 40019214. Retrieved 17 January 2025.
- ^ a b Schlup, Leonard (1981). "Augustus Hill Garland: Gilded Age Democrat". The Arkansas Historical Quarterly. 40 (4): 338–346. doi:10.2307/40020712. ISSN 0004-1823. JSTOR 40020712. Retrieved 19 January 2025.
- ^ "U.S. Senator of Arkansas is Dead". Biloxi Daily Herald. 2 October 1916. Retrieved 22 January 2025 – via NewspaperArchive.com.
- ^ a b Jacobson, Charles (1925). The Life Story of Jeff Davis: The Stormy Petrel of Arkansas Politics. Parke-Harper Publishing Company. Retrieved 22 January 2025 – via Google Books.
- ^ "Miller, John Elvis". Biographical Directory of the United States Congress. United States Senate. Retrieved 22 January 2025.
- ^ Douthit, George. "State Capitol News Report". Benton Courier. State News Bureau. p. 2. Retrieved 22 January 2025.
- ^ "Fulbright Resigns Senate Seat Early; Pension Will Rise". The New York Times. The Associated Press. 27 December 1974. Retrieved 22 January 2025.