Arkansas Lieutenant Governor
General information
Office Type:	Partisan
Office website:	Official Link
Compensation:	$46,705
2025 FY Budget:	$572,202
Term limits:	2 terms
Structure
Length of term:	4 years
Authority:	Arkansas Constitution, Article 6, Section 1
Selection Method:	Elected
Current Officeholder(s)
Lieutenant Governor of Arkansas Leslie Rutledge Republican Party Assumed office: January 10, 2023
Elections
Next election:	2026
Last election:	2022
Other Arkansas Executive Offices
Governor •Lieutenant Governor •Secretary of State •Attorney General •Treasurer •Auditor •Commissioner of Education •Agriculture Secretary •Insurance Commissioner •Commissioner of State Lands •Natural Resources Exec. Director •Labor Director •Public Service Commission

TheLieutenant Governor of the State of Arkansas is an elected constitutional officer, the second ranking officer of the executive branch and the first officer in line to succeed theGovernor of Arkansas. The lieutenant governor is popularly elected every four years by a plurality and is limited to two terms.^[1][2]

Current officeholder

The current Lieutenant Governor of Arkansas isLeslie Rutledge (R). Rutledge assumed office in 2023.

Authority

TheConstitution of Arkansas establishes the office of the lieutenant governor inArticle VI, the Executive.

Arkansas Constitution, Article 6, Section 1:

Qualifications

Per Amendment 6 to the Arkansas Constitution, the lieutenant governor must "possess the same qualifications of eligibility for the office as the Governor."^[3] Under Article 6, Section 11 of the constitution, the governor may not hold any federal office, any civil or military commission, any office in another state or any other office in Arkansas concurrently with the gubernatorial term.Article 6, Section 5 requires thegovernor to be at least 30 years old, an American citizen and a resident ofArkansas for at least seven years on election day.

Constitution of Arkansas, Amendment 6, Section 5

Constitution of Arkansas, Article 6, Section 11

Constitution of Arkansas, Article 6, Section 5

Elections

See also:Gubernatorial election cycles by state

See also:Election of lieutenant governors

Arkansas elects its lieutenant governors during federal midterm election years (e.g. 2018, 2022, 2026, and 2030). Candidates forgovernor and lieutenant governor run on separate tickets, so it is possible for the two officeholders to be members of different parties. Winners assume office on the second Tuesday in January following the election. If two candidates are tied after the general election, a joint session of the legislature chooses the winner when the General Assembly convenes.

Term limits

In 1998, Arkansans adopted Amendment 73 to thestate constitution, which limited all executive department officers to two terms. Whereas some states allow previous officeholders to run again after spending one term out of office, Arkansas does not.^[2]

Arkansas Constitution, Amendment 73-1:

Election results

• 2030
• 2026
• 2022
• 2018

See also: Arkansas lieutenant gubernatorial election, 2030

There are noofficial candidates yet for this election.

See also: Arkansas lieutenant gubernatorial election, 2026

General election

The general election will occur on November 3, 2026.

The candidate list in this election may not be complete.

General election for Lieutenant Governor of Arkansas

IncumbentLeslie Rutledge (R) is running in the general election for Lieutenant Governor of Arkansas on November 3, 2026.

		Candidate
		Leslie Rutledge (R)

---

	Incumbents arebolded and underlined.
= candidate completed theBallotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you,complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data?Contact our sales team.

Democratic primary

The Democratic primary scheduled for March 3, 2026, was canceled.

Republican primary

The Republican primary scheduled for March 3, 2026, was canceled. IncumbentLeslie Rutledge (R) advanced from the Republican primary for Lieutenant Governor of Arkansas without appearing on the ballot.

See also: Arkansas lieutenant gubernatorial election, 2022

General election

General election for Lieutenant Governor of Arkansas

Leslie Rutledge (R) defeatedKelly Krout (D) andFrank Gilbert (L) in the general election for Lieutenant Governor of Arkansas on November 8, 2022.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Leslie Rutledge (R)	64.2	577,316
		Kelly Krout (D)	32.1	288,631
		Frank Gilbert (L)	3.7	33,163

---

	There were noincumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 899,110
= candidate completed theBallotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you,complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data?Contact our sales team.

Democratic primary

The Democratic primary scheduled for May 24, 2022, was canceled.Kelly Krout (D) advanced from the Democratic primary for Lieutenant Governor of Arkansas without appearing on the ballot.

Withdrawn or disqualified candidates

• Drew Pritt (D)

Republican primary

Republican primary for Lieutenant Governor of Arkansas

The following candidates ran in the Republican primary for Lieutenant Governor of Arkansas on May 24, 2022.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Leslie Rutledge	54.0	183,888
		Jason Rapert	14.7	50,063
		Greg Bledsoe	9.9	33,722
		Joseph Wood	8.6	29,277
		Doyle Webb	6.8	23,188
		Chris Bequette	6.0	20,411

---

	There were noincumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 340,549
= candidate completed theBallotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you,complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data?Contact our sales team.

Libertarian Party convention

Libertarian convention for Lieutenant Governor of Arkansas

Frank Gilbert (L) advanced from the Libertarian Party convention for Lieutenant Governor of Arkansas on February 20, 2022.

		Candidate
✔		Frank Gilbert

---

	There were noincumbents in this race. The results have been certified.
= candidate completed theBallotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you,complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data?Contact our sales team.

General election

General election for Lieutenant Governor of Arkansas

IncumbentTim Griffin (R) defeatedAnthony Bland (D) andFrank Gilbert (L) in the general election for Lieutenant Governor of Arkansas on November 6, 2018.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Tim Griffin (R)	64.2	570,433
		Anthony Bland (D)	33.0	293,535
		Frank Gilbert (L)	2.8	24,767

---

	Incumbents arebolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 888,7350
= candidate completed theBallotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you,complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data?Contact our sales team.

Democratic primary

Democratic primary for Lieutenant Governor of Arkansas

Anthony Bland (D) advanced from the Democratic primary for Lieutenant Governor of Arkansas on May 22, 2018.

		Candidate
✔		Anthony Bland

---

	There were noincumbents in this race. The results have been certified.
= candidate completed theBallotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you,complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data?Contact our sales team.

Republican primary

Republican primary for Lieutenant Governor of Arkansas

IncumbentTim Griffin (R) advanced from the Republican primary for Lieutenant Governor of Arkansas on May 22, 2018.

		Candidate
✔		Tim Griffin

---

	Incumbents arebolded and underlined. The results have been certified.
= candidate completed theBallotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you,complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data?Contact our sales team.

Previous election results

2014

See also:Arkansas Lieutenant Gubernatorial election, 2014

Lieutenant Governor of Arkansas, 2014
Party		Candidate	Vote %	Votes
	Republican	Tim Griffin	57.2%	479,673
	Democratic	John Burkhalter	38.6%	324,260
	Libertarian	Chris Olson	4.2%	35,257
Total Votes				839,190
Election results viaArkansas Secretary of State

Vacancies

If the lieutenant governor leaves office, is disabled or ascends to the office ofgovernor, a special election is held to choose a replacement; the new officeholder serves for a full term, not just for the remainder of the unexpired term.

Duties

The the lieutenant governor replaces agovernor who has died, become disabled, or was removed from office. The lieutenant governor also serves as president of theArkansas State Senate, though the lieutenant governor may cast a vote only in the case of a tie.^[1]

Divisions

Note:Ballotpedia's state executive officials project researches state official websites for information that describes the divisions (if any exist) of a state executive office. That information for the Lieutenant Governor of Arkansas has not yet been added. After extensive research we were unable to identify any relevant information on state official websites. If you have any additional information about this office for inclusion on this section and/or page, pleaseemail us.

State budget

See also:Arkansas state budget and finances

The budget for the Arkansas Lieutenant Governor's Office in Fiscal Year 2025 was $572,202.^[4]

Compensation

See also:Comparison of lieutenant gubernatorial salaries

The compensation of all state constitutional officers is set by Amendment 70 to theArkansas Constitution, which was amended in 2014 by Arkansas voters who passed theElected Officials Ethics, Transparency and Financial Reform Amendment. A commission was established under this amendment to set and approve new salaries for public officials in Arkansas.^[5]

2023

In 2023, the officer's salary was $46,705, according to theCouncil of State Governments.^[6]

2022

In 2022, the officer's salary was $46,705, according to theCouncil of State Governments.^[7]

2021

In 2021, the lieutenant governor received a salary of $45,344, according to theCouncil of State Governments.^[8]

2020

In 2020, the lieutenant governor received a salary of $44,674 according to theCouncil of State Governments.^[9]

2019

In 2019, the lieutenant governor received a salary of $43,584 according to theCouncil of State Governments.^[10]

2018

In 2018, the lieutenant governor received a salary of $42,315 according to theCouncil of State Governments.^[11]

2017

In 2017, the lieutenant governor received a salary of $42,315 according to theCouncil of State Governments.^[12]

2016

In 2016, the lieutenant governor received a salary of $42,315 according to theCouncil of State Governments.^[13]

2015

In 2015, the lieutenant governor’s salary was increased to $42,315 according to theCouncil of State Governments.^[14]

2014

In 2014, the lieutenant governor received a salary of $41,896 according to theCouncil of State Governments.^[15]

2010

In 2010, the lieutenant governor was paid$42,219, the 39th highest lieutenant gubernatorial salary in America.

Historical officeholders

There have been 18 Arkansas Lieutenant Governors since 1927. Of the 18 officeholders, six were Republican and 12 were Democrat.^[16]

List of officeholders from 1927-Present
#	Name	Tenure	Party
1	Harvey Parnell	1927-1928	Democratic
2	William Lee Cazort	1921-1931	Democratic
3	Lawrence Elery Wilson	1931-1933	Democratic
4	William Lee Cazort	1933-1937	Democratic
5	Robert L. "Bob" Bailey	1937-1943	Democratic
6	James Lavesque Shaver	1943-1947	Democratic
7	Nathan Green Gordon	1947-1967	Democratic
8	Maurice L. Britt	1967-1971	Republican
9	Dr. Bob Cowley Riley	1971-1975	Democratic
10	Joe Edward Purcell	1975-1981	Democratic
11	Winston Bryan	1981-1990	Democratic
12	Jim Guy Tucker	1990-1993	Democratic
13	Mike Huckabee	1993-1996	Republican
14	Winthrop Paul Rockefeller	1996-2006	Republican
15	Bill Halter	2007-2011	Democratic
16	Mark A. Darr	2011-2014	Republican
17	Tim Griffin	2015-2023	Republican
18	Leslie Rutledge	2023-present	Republican

Recent news

The link below is to the most recent stories in a Google news search for the termsArkansas Lieutenant Governor Rutledge. These results are automatically generated from Google. Ballotpedia does not curate or endorse these articles.

Contact information

Physical address:
Office of the Lt. Governor
State Capitol, Suite 270
Little Rock, AR 72201-1061

Phone: 501-682-2144
Fax: 501-682-2894

See also

Arkansas	State Executive Elections	News and Analysis
Arkansas State Executive OfficesArkansas State LegislatureArkansas Courts	2026 •2025 •2024 •2023 •2022 •2021 •2020 •2019 •2018 •2017 •2016Arkansas elections:2026 •2025 •2024 •2023 •2022 •2021 •2020 •2019 •2018 •2017 •2016	Party control of state governmentState government trifectasState of the state addressesPartisan composition of governors

External links

• Lieutenant Governor of Arkansas

Footnotes

	v • e State ofArkansas Little Rock (capital)
Elections	What's on my ballot? |Elections in 2026 |How to vote |How to run for office |Ballot measures
Government	Who represents me? |U.S. President |U.S. Congress |Federal courts |State executives |State legislature |State and local courts |Counties |Cities |School districts |Public policy