Important things to know for the upcoming Preferential Primary!
The Arkansas Republican Primary is now a semi-closed primary. What this means is that only voters who are registered as Republican or unaffiliated “Optional” will be allowed to request a Republican ballot.
If you are registered as Democrat, and wish to vote a Republican ballot, you must change your party affiliation to Republican or unaffiliated “Optional” prior to receiving the ballot. This can be done by updating your party affiliation on a Voter Registration Application. These applications are available at the Lawrence County Clerk’s Office, DHS, and Secretary of State website. You can also update your party affiliation at any polling location during early voting and on Election Day prior to receiving your ballot.
- If you are registered as Democrat you will only be eligible to receive a Democrat or Nonpartisan Judicial ballot, unless otherwise updating your party affiliation as explained above.
- If you are registered as Optional or Republican, you will be eligible to receive a Democrat, Nonpartisan Judicial, or Republican ballot.
- All ballots will have school board and nonpartisan judicial races listed.
If you’re unsure of how your party affiliation is listed, you can find out at the link below or by calling the Lawrence County Clerk’s Office and we’ll be happy to look it up for you.
https://www.voterview.ar-nova.org/VoterView
- If you’re a registered voter in Arkansas and have moved, you will be able to transfer your voter registration to the new county you reside in up to 7:30pm on Election Day. We encourage you to update this information ahead of time to avoid delays at the polls however, it can be done at your polling site.
Early voting for the March 3, 2026, Preferential Primary Election is just around the corner beginning on February 17th – March 2nd at the Lawrence County Courthouse.
As always, if you have any questions come see or give us a call at 870-886-1111 and we’ll be happy to assist you!
Lawrence County Clerk Brandi Parker