A complete review isn’t readily available, but reports are increasing of Arkansas counties reducing the number of polling places in the May primary election.

Fewer polling places mean affected voters will have to find new and perhaps farther distant places to vote. Is this a part of the national vote suppression effort of the Republican Party, which controls county election commissions in Arkansas? Yes or no, harder voting is a result.

Josh Price, a former Pulaski County election commissioner who’s running as a Democrat for secretary of state, took note of some changes in rural counties on Twitter.

In Van Buren County you can choose between polls in Bee Branch, Fairfield Bay, Clinton and Dennard. As the map shows, if you live in Chimes, Rex, Pleasant Grove or Alread, among others, you have a good distance over often hilly terrain to reach a poll.

The terrain isn’t so challenging in Pulaski County, but voters have taken note of a reduction in polling places in the state’s most populous county. Among them, voters in the Rose City neighborhood of North Little Rock:

This complaint prompted me to ask Melinda Lemons, the Pulaski election coordinator, about countywide changes.

She said the number of polling places in 2022 will be down more than 15 percent from the number in 2020, from 105 109 to 89. (The list I got from the state Board of Election Commissioners indicated there were even more polling places in 2020 — 126 — but I haven’t gotten to the bottom of that discrepancy. Lemons said the county sought reimbursement for 120 voting sites, 11 early voting and 109 regular voting locations))

Lemons broke down the specific changes this year.

The following locations decided not to be locations due to Covid

Community Christian Church Maumelle
St. Anne Parish Hall
First Baptist Church Little Rock
Brady Masonic Lodge
W.W. Williams NW Patrol
Baseline Academy
Mills Middle School

As part of the redistricting process the board analyzed the precinct polling locations and discovered some precincts had more than one polling location within their boundaries. They had to select the best option, as a result the following were placed in reserve:

Cooperative Extension
Duran Youth Center
Glenview Community Center
Grace Presbyterian Church
Greater Archview
Indianhead Lake Baptist Church
St. James UMC
St. Michaels Episcopal Church
Lakewood UMC

Harris Elementary School was replaced with McAlmont Church of Christ.

I have attempted to get a statewide comparison of polls this year and in 2020. I got a partial count of 2020 polling places from Chris Madison at the state Board of Election Commissioners, but he said he wouldn’t have a count on 2022 until the counties submit requests for reimbursements. I’ve asked for a full tally from the secretary of state’s office, but, though I was promised a response, I haven’t gotten one yet. Its website has uploaded polling places from some counties, but not all just yet.

Some examples from the polling place lookup page on the secretary of state’s website, however, are instructive. It shows 41 polling places in Washington County this primary, against 58 in the 2020 primary. Benton County, which had 49 polling places in 2020, is listed with 35 on the secretary of state’s website for this year.

A move to “voting centers” from neighborhood precincts saves money (a voter can vote at any of the centers). The pandemic has and may still play a role. Every county has special circumstances. But there’s no need to speculate on whether this is a partisan coordinated effort with specific areas targeted for a loss of polls.  Less is less.

This is particularly true when viewed in the context of four election laws passed by the Republican legislature, currently put on hold by Circuit Judge Wendell Griffen but on appeal. The legislation aimed to make it much harder to cast a mail absentee ballot and also discouraged help, such as water, for people trapped in long lines outside polling places. Such lines could become longer still with a reduction in polling places.

Harder absentee voting. Fewer polling places. Longer lines.

Sound like vote encouragement to you?

Retired senior editor of the Arkansas Times.