Who's In the Race
Republican incumbent Sarah Huckabee Sanders, Democrat Fredrick Love and Libertarian Colt Shelby face each other in Arkansas's governor's race on Nov. 3. Sanders is incumbent governor and running for reelection.
Sanders ran unopposed on the Republican side in the March 3 primaries. Love won the Democratic primary that same day with 81% of the vote, defeating Supha Xayprasith-Mays, who received 19%.
Endorsements
Donald Trump endorsed Sanders ahead of the primary. The organization Maggie's List also endorsed her.
Race Outlook: Ratings and Polling
Every major race-rating outlet calls this race firmly in Sanders's favor. Cook Political Report and Sabato's Crystal Ball have each rated the race Solid Republican as Oct. 28. Inside Elections and the consensus rating also show Solid Republican as of Oct. 23.
Previous Elections
Donald Trump carried Arkansas in the 2024 presidential election with 64% of the vote, while in the 2022 governor's race, Sanders defeated Democrat Chris Jones by nearly 28 percentage points, taking 63% of the vote to Jones's 35%.
The 2026 Democratic primary, however, did draw 129,239 votes, which is up about 34,800 from the 94,472 cast in the 2022 Democratic primary. That uptick, roughly 37% more Democratic primary voters than four years ago, could reflect growing enthusiasm on the left, but it could also reflect a more competitive primary field or simply higher overall interest in a midterm cycle.
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