Clarke Tucker
2023 - Present
2027
1
Clarke Tucker (Democratic Party) is a member of the Arkansas State Senate, representing District 14. He assumed office on January 9, 2023. His current term ends on January 11, 2027.
Tucker (Democratic Party) ran for re-election to the Arkansas State Senate to represent District 14. He won in the general election on November 8, 2022.
Tucker is a former Democratic member of the Arkansas House of Representatives representing District 35 from 2015 to 2019.[1]
Biography
Clarke Tucker earned a B.A. in government from Harvard University in 2003 and a J.D. from the University of Arkansas in 2006. Tucker's career experience includes owning Clarke Tucker Law and working as an attorney with Quattlebaum, Grooms, Tull, & Burrow PLLC; a law clerk for J. Leon Holmes of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Arkansas; and an adjunct professor with the University of Arkansas at Little Rock William H. Bowen School of Law.[2][3][4][5]
Committee assignments
2023-2024
Tucker was assigned to the following committees:
- Senate Judiciary Committee
- Senate State Agencies and Governmental Affairs Committee, Vice Chair
- Senate Efficiency Committee
- Ethics Committee, Vice Chair
- Joint Budget Committee
- Public Retirement and Social Security Programs Committee
2021-2022
Tucker was assigned to the following committees:
- Senate Children and Youth Committee, Vice-chair
- Senate State Agencies and Governmental Affairs Committee
- Transportation, Technology and Legislative Affairs Committee
- Advanced Communications and Information Technology Committee
- Boys State Committee
- Code Revision Commission
- Legislative Joint Auditing Committee
2017 legislative session
At the beginning of the 2017 legislative session, this legislator served on the following committees:
| Arkansas committee assignments, 2017 |
|---|
| • Aging, Children and Youth, Legislative and Military Affairs |
| • Judiciary |
| • Joint Performance Review |
| • Joint Performance Review |
2015 legislative session
At the beginning of the 2015 legislative session, Tucker served on the following committees:
| Arkansas committee assignments, 2015 |
|---|
| • Aging, Children and Youth, Legislative and Military Affairs |
| • Revenue and Taxation |
| • Joint Performance Review |
Sponsored legislation
The following table lists bills this person sponsored as a legislator, according to BillTrack50 and sorted by action history. Bills are sorted by the date of their last action. The following list may not be comprehensive. To see all bills this legislator sponsored, click on the legislator's name in the title of the table.
Elections
2022
See also: Arkansas State Senate elections, 2022
General election
General election for Arkansas State Senate District 14
Incumbent Clarke Tucker defeated Beth Mason in the general election for Arkansas State Senate District 14 on November 8, 2022.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ |  | Clarke Tucker (D) | 63.5 | 23,273 |
 | Beth Mason (R)  | 36.5 | 13,375 | |
| Total votes: 36,648 | |||
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Democratic primary election
The Democratic primary election was canceled. Incumbent Clarke Tucker advanced from the Democratic primary for Arkansas State Senate District 14.
Republican primary election
The Republican primary election was canceled. Beth Mason advanced from the Republican primary for Arkansas State Senate District 14.
2020
See also: Arkansas State Senate elections, 2020
General election
General election for Arkansas State Senate District 32
Clarke Tucker defeated Bob Thomas in the general election for Arkansas State Senate District 32 on November 3, 2020.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Clarke Tucker (D) | 64.9 | 28,481 |
 | Bob Thomas (R) | 35.1 | 15,392 | |
| Total votes: 43,873 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
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Democratic primary election
The Democratic primary election was canceled. Clarke Tucker advanced from the Democratic primary for Arkansas State Senate District 32.
Republican primary election
The Republican primary election was canceled. Bob Thomas advanced from the Republican primary for Arkansas State Senate District 32.
2018
General election
General election for U.S. House Arkansas District 2
Incumbent French Hill defeated Clarke Tucker and Joe Swafford in the general election for U.S. House Arkansas District 2 on November 6, 2018.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ |  | French Hill (R) | 52.1 | 132,125 |
| Clarke Tucker (D) | 45.8 | 116,135 | |
 | Joe Swafford (L) | 2.0 | 5,193 | |
| Total votes: 253,453 (100.00% precincts reporting) | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
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Democratic primary election
Democratic primary for U.S. House Arkansas District 2
Clarke Tucker defeated Gwen Combs, Paul Spencer, and Jonathan Dunkley in the Democratic primary for U.S. House Arkansas District 2 on May 22, 2018.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Clarke Tucker | 57.8 | 23,325 |
 | Gwen Combs | 20.3 | 8,188 | |
 | Paul Spencer | 12.5 | 5,063 | |
 | Jonathan Dunkley | 9.3 | 3,768 | |
| Total votes: 40,344 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
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Republican primary election
Republican primary for U.S. House Arkansas District 2
Incumbent French Hill advanced from the Republican primary for U.S. House Arkansas District 2 on May 22, 2018.
Candidate | ||
| ✔ | | French Hill |
| ||||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
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Independent primary election
No Independent candidates ran in the primary.
Withdrawn or disqualified candidates
- Natashia Burch Hulsey (Independent)
2016
Tucker ran unopposed in the Democratic primary and in the general election for the Arkansas House of Representatives District 35 seat.
2014
Elections for the Arkansas House of Representatives took place in 2014. A primary election took place on May 20, 2014; a runoff election took place where necessary on June 10, 2014. The general election was held on November 4, 2014. The signature filing deadline for candidates wishing to run in this election was March 3, 2014. Clarke Tucker was unopposed in the Democratic primary. Stacy Hurst was unopposed in the Republican primary. Tucker defeated Hurst in the general election.[6][7]
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic |  Clarke Tucker |
52.9% | 6,729 | |
| Republican | Stacy Hurst | 47.1% | 5,991 | |
| Total Votes | 12,720 | |||
Campaign themes
2022
Ballotpedia survey responses
See also: Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection
Clarke Tucker did not complete Ballotpedia's 2022 Candidate Connection survey.
2020
Clarke Tucker did not complete Ballotpedia's 2020 Candidate Connection survey.
2018
Campaign website
The following themes were found on Tucker's 2018 campaign website.
| " |
Health Care Affordable health care Clarke Tucker will work to ensure access to high-quality, low-cost health care. It’s vital for every child, woman, and man to have a dignified and full life. Arkansas families should never have to choose between their health, their food, or providing for their family’s future. Medicare Reform Clarke Tucker will reform Medicare to make it more efficient. We can create a more cost-efficient Medicare program by combatting waste and exercising appropriate oversight. In addition, Medicare should be able to negotiate drug prices to keep the cost of prescription drugs down. ACA Clarke Tucker will protect the Affordable Care Act. Last year, the GOP-led U.S. House passed the American Health Care Act, which would have stripped away health care from millions of Americans and Arkansans by making care more expensive and less accessible for low-wage workers, the elderly, those who have difficulty navigating an overly complex system, and the 32% of Arkansans who have a pre-existing condition. My opponent voted for the bill. ACA Clarke Tucker will improve the Affordable Care Act. By incentivizing insurers to participate in the exchanges, especially in rural and underserved areas, we can increase competition among insurers and give Americans more options. Additionally, Tucker will work to restore subsidies that have kept costs down, which his opponent voted to repeal. Jobs I believe a job brings more to an individual, to a family, and to a community than any check could ever deliver. Many in our communities are still struggling. That’s why investments in infrastructure and the jobs of tomorrow, and support for small businesses and working families are essential to ensure every person who can work has the opportunity to do so. Infrastructure Clarke will vote to increase federal investments in infrastructure. The roads, bridges and maintenance that we work on now are all investments in our future that pay out for generations to come. To make sure that our communities are prosperous and competitive in the 21st Century economy, Clarke will work to bring good paying jobs to Arkansas to build our future. Earned Income Tax Credit Clarke Tucker believes in expanding the Earned Income Tax Credit. The recent tax reform passed through congress mostly benefits the extremely wealthy and large corporations. Clarke believes in expanding tax credits for working people to make sure that our families are bringing home more of their paychecks to invest in themselves and their local businesses. Rural Broadband We must invest in faster, more reliable internet access for our rural communities. New online business are being created and are hiring around the world, but without access, some communities are left out of the economic growth. Clark will help invest in rural broadband to connect our communities with opportunities in national markets right here at home. Lower Taxes for Working Families The Government works for people, not just large corporations. America's economy is growing, but not enough of that growth is going to working people, especially while federal deficits are exploding again. We need to lower taxes for our working families, while promoting policies that create a responsible and forward-looking federal budget. Bildung Access to a quality education is access to opportunity. We must ensure that all Arkansans, both young and old, have the resources and opportunity to realize the most of their God-given potential. Pre-K Clarke Tucker will help increase investment in Pre-K and Early Childhood Education. Studies have shown that access to Pre-K and good early child education helps children enter school more prepared to learn. A good early start is so important that kids who attend Pre-K graduate at higher rates. Early education helps all kids but is particularly beneficial for disadvantaged kids and kids of color. Teacher Pay Clarke Tucker will fight for better pay for our teachers. No job is more important to Arkansas children than teachers, and yet despite large increases in the cost of living, teacher pay has barely increased. Clarke Tucker knows that investing in our teachers is investing in our kids. Höhere Bildung Clarke Tucker will make college more affordable and accessible for today's kids. College is so expensive that students are either unable to go or graduate saddled with debt that drags on their and America's future prosperity. We must provide more options to our young people - better ways of paying for college and more two year degree and trade school options to empower our workforce. For-Profit Charter Schools Clarke Tucker opposes for-profit charter schools. While some charter schools have had success, many have suffered from high teacher turnover, extremely low graduation rates and incentives that encourage grade falsification. When schools are focused on profits, our children are the ones paying the price. Government Accountability The government works for the people, not special interests. Right now, our government lacks courage, honesty, integrity, and a duty to serve. Our representatives have failed to look out for us and instead have toed the party line in order to further special interests and their own careers. We must enact key reforms to ensure that our representatives focus on the people, and not the politics of division. Gerrymandering Politicians shouldn't be able to pick their voters by drawing their own districts. Clarke believes we should end partisan gerrymandering by giving independent, non-partisan commissions the task of redistricting. Campaign Finance Reform Clarke Tucker will help stop the scourge of dark money in politics. Clarke will work to enact comprehensive campaign finance reform to end the legacy of Citizens United and the spectre of dark special interest money in our politics. Election Security Clarke will protect the integrity of our elections. With both new legislation and technology investments, we must work to defend our democracy by ensuring that foreign threats stay out of our elections and domestic affairs. Fighting Corruption Clarke Tucker will fight corruption and grifting. Without strong oversight and real accountability for executives and agency leaders who commit wrongdoing, corruption will continue to fester. Clarke is committed to the idea that the rule of law applies to everyone, even the rich and powerful. Immigration and Border Security We can find a bipartisan plan for action. There is actually much in the way of bipartisan support for comprehensive immigration reform, yet our current Congress has engaged in political finger-pointing and gridlock for years instead of seeking common ground. Together we can create reform that that secures our borders, strengthens our economy, and upholds our American values. In Congress, I will work to bring folks on both sides of the aisle together on this important issue. DACA A path to citizenship for DACA recipients. We can both secure our borders and show compassion in our immigration policy, specifically to the over 800,000 DACA recipients — undocumented young men and women who were brought here by their parents years ago and are just as American as you or I am. Homeland Security Strong, safe borders with increased transparency. Like the vast majority of Americans, I support ICE and our Homeland Security agencies in carrying out the mission to keep our borders safe and strong, while increasing accountability and transparency in our immigration enforcement through common-sense strategic investments. While we need increased border security, building a border wall is an inefficient and ineffective use of taxpayer funds with a price tag of $21.6 Billion — it also sends the wrong message about who we are as a country and our values. Social Security and Medicare Our seniors deserve full retirement benefits. Our seniors have spent their lives working to give future generations a chance at a better life. They deserve full retirement benefits that let them live out their lives with dignity. That’s why I will fight ongoing attacks on Social Security and Medicare, and work to increase support for nutrition programs for seniors. Protecting Social Security We must safeguard Social Security benefits for Arkansas' Seniors. Arkansans have worked their entire lives to earn their retirement. We must protect Social Security and oppose calls for privatization of our seniors’ benefits. Improving Medicare We can protect access to Medicare and make it more efficient. Medicare is incredibly important to our seniors. Not only does it provide economic security, it improves lives. We can improve access to health care by exercising appropriate oversight over the Medicare program. Making Prescriptions Affordable Clarke knows that prescription drugs are too expensive. He'll fight to reduce prices. Senior citizens shouldn't have to choose between eating and buying their medicine. Prescription drugs have gotten incredibly expensive and we need to do more to help make them affordable. Clarke also opposes government pension offsetting. Meal Assistance We can expand seniors' access to healthy food. Access to healthy food helps seniors live healthier more independent lives. And yet programs like meals on wheels are under threat because legislators often don't appreciate how much they are needed. Clarke will help protect these valuable programs. Equality All Americans must be treated equally under law. Every Arkansan has a stake in our future and each deserves the fullest opportunity to contribute to and share in our collective prosperity. This is a fundamental value that I carry with me every day. Equal Pay Clarke Tucker believes in equal pay for equal work. All Americans should be paid equally and treated fairly, no matter their gender or race. LGBTQ We need to support the Equality Act. We need to support legislation like the Equality Act, which would provide the same nondiscrimination protections to LGBTQ Arkansans as any other protected class under federal law. The Right to Vote Clarke Tucker wants to reform discriminatory Voter ID laws. Congress must work together to combat laws that disenfranchise our most vulnerable and underserved citizens. Every man and woman has the right to vote and we must work to create a system where everyone feels they can exercise that right. Additionally, we need to let young people know their vote really matters. Environment There is no denying humans’ effect on our environment. Whether it’s cleaning up our forests and streams or limiting carbon emissions, our actions are responsible for the condition of our planet. As residents of the Natural State, we must take this responsibility seriously. Clean Power We should invest in clean wind, water, and solar power. It’s not only good for our environment, but it’s also good for business — agriculture, manufacturing and tourism industries all stand to benefit from smarter investments in renewable, clean energy. Preserving our natural resources. Clarke will work to stop the ongoing attacks on environmental protections. Those who seek to remove environmental protections simply do not understand what we risk losing. Arkansans are blessed to live in a state of great natural beauty. We must preserve that beauty and our many resources, which are vital to our personal well-being and the strength of our economy. Climate Change Clarke believes in reengaging with the world via the Paris Climate Agreement. Arkansas is already experiencing dozens more 90 degree days each year than when Clarke was a child. We should rejoin every other nation on the planet in committing to the goals set forth in the Paris Climate Accord to ensure a prosperous future for our children.[8] |
” |
| —Clarke Tucker's 2018 campaign website[9] | ||
Campaign advertisements
The following is an example of an ad from Tucker's 2018 election campaign.
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Campaign finance summary
Note: The finance data shown here comes from the disclosures required of candidates and parties. Depending on the election or state, this may represent only a portion of all the funds spent on their behalf. Satellite spending groups may or may not have expended funds related to the candidate or politician on whose page you are reading this disclaimer. Campaign finance data from elections may be incomplete. For elections to federal offices, complete data can be found at the FEC website. Click here for more on federal campaign finance law and here for more on state campaign finance law.
Scorecards
A scorecard evaluates a legislator’s voting record. Its purpose is to inform voters about the legislator’s political positions. Because scorecards have varying purposes and methodologies, each report should be considered on its own merits. For example, an advocacy group’s scorecard may assess a legislator’s voting record on one issue while a state newspaper’s scorecard may evaluate the voting record in its entirety.
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Click here for an overview of legislative scorecards in all 50 states. To contribute to the list of Arkansas scorecards, email suggestions to [email protected].
2023
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2023, click [show]. |
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In 2023, the Arkansas State Legislature was in session from January 9 to May 1.
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2022
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2022, click [show]. |
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In 2022, the Arkansas State Legislature was in session from February 14 to March 15.
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2021
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2021, click [show]. |
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In 2021, the Arkansas State Legislature was in session from January 11 to October 15.
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2018
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2018, click [show]. |
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In 2018, the Arkansas State Legislature was in session from February 12 through March 12. The legislature held a special session from March 13 to March 15.
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2017
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In 2017, the 91st Arkansas State Legislature was in session from January 9 through May 1. The Legislature held a special session from May 1 to May 3.
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2016
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2016, click [show]. |
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In 2016, the 90th Arkansas State Legislature was in session from April 13 through May 9. The Legislature held a three-day special session from April 6 to April 8 over healthcare. The Legislature held a second special session from May 19 to May 23 over transportation.
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2015
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2015, click [show]. |
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In 2015, the 90th Arkansas State Legislature was in session from January 12 through April 2.
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Noteworthy events
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| Coronavirus pandemic |
| Select a topic from the dropdown below to learn more.
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Tucker announced on January 12, 2022, that he tested positive for COVID-19. He said he was vaccinated at the time he contracted the virus.[10]
See also
2022 Elections
External links
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Candidate Arkansas State Senate District 14 |
Officeholder Arkansas State Senate District 14 |
Personal |
Footnotes
- ↑ CT Post, ""State lawmaker launches bid for US House seat in Arkansas,"" February 5, 2018
- ↑ qgtb.com, "Everett C. (Clarke) Tucker IV," accessed March 26, 2014
- ↑ Clarke Tucker, "Bio," accessed December 26, 2020
- ↑ LinkedIn, "Clarke Tucker," accessed April 4, 2023
- ↑ Arkansas Senate, "Clarke Tucker," accessed April 4, 2023
- ↑ Arkansas Secretary of State, "Candidate Information," accessed March 5, 2014
- ↑ Arkansas Secretary of State, "Official primary election results," accessed June 26, 2014
- ↑ Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
- ↑ Clarke Tucker's 2018 campaign website, "Values," accessed September 25, 2018
- ↑ KARK, "Arkansas State Senator Clarke Tucker tests positive for COVID-19," January 12, 2022
| Political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Bill Sample (R) |
Arkansas State Senate District 14 2023-Present |
Succeeded by - |
| Preceded by Will Bond (D) |
Arkansas State Senate District 32 2021-2023 |
Succeeded by Joshua Bryant (R) |
| Preceded by - |
Arkansas House of Representatives District 35 2015-2019 |
Succeeded by Andrew Collins (D) |
