New Justice of the Peace Becomes First Openly Transgender Arkansan Elected to Office

Kevin Flores made history this week in Springdale as the first person of color to get elected to the City Council. After immigrating from El Salvador in the mid-1990s as a child, Flores grew up in Springdale, went on to serve in the Marine Corps, and is now an attorney. He beat incumbent Rick Evans with 57 percent of the vote.

Several diverse candidates ran for office across the state. Some have won elections and will now serve on city councils, quorum courts or in the Arkansas Legislature. Leading up to the election, Arkansas United also made numerous efforts to encourage minority communities to turn out to at the polls.

Spontaneous gatherings and celebrations took place across Arkansas this weekend after Joseph R. Biden Jr. was declared 46th President of the United States and his running mate, Kamala D. Harris, elected the 49th Vice President, surpassing the required 270 electoral votes. In this audio montage, we hear people's reactions in Fayetteville's historic district and downtown.

Roby Brock, with our partner Talk Business and Politics, says Arkansas was deeply Republican when 2020 began. He says it is even more Republican after yesterday's elections. We discuss last night's results in Arkansas.

The 22nd annual Arkansas Poll reports voters are most concerned about healthcare and the economy amid the pandemic. Politics was a top issue for more than 20 percent of respondents for the first time in the history of the poll.