How Elected Officials Impact Your Civil Liberties

Local elections are important in the fight to protect our basic civil rights and civil liberties. There are many important races on our ballots which impact those rights.

• Find your sample ballot through your local election authority.
• Check the candidate’s website, social media, local news sources, or attend local candidate events to speak to the candidate directly.
• Check if organizations that you support have endorsements or information on the candidate’s position.
• Local bar associations, including county bar associations, are likely to post evaluations of judicial candidates.

Voters can elect and then decide to retain judges at the State Supreme Court, Appellate (regional), Circuit, and District Court (county) level. Judges can:

• Interpret and consider the constitutionality of laws passed by the state legislature – including abortion laws, voting laws, and anti-discrimination laws.
• Hear and decide on cases regarding people’s rights and civil liberties.
• Preside over the criminal legal system.

Also referred to as Prosecuting Attorney. Elected prosecutors are the most influential actors in the criminal justice system. Their decisions over local and state criminal justice laws have been primary drivers of incarceration and racial disparities throughout the justice system. Prosecutors have the power to:

• Decide who should be charged with a crime and can decline to press charges, including declining to prosecute a person accused of violating an abortion ban.
• Exercise prosecutorial discretion to not bring charges against those accused of violating classroom censorship laws and education gag orders.
• Decline to prosecute crimes related to HIV status, sex work, and other criminalization that disproportionately affects LGBTQ people.
• Train staff to respectfully manage cases involving hate crimes and domestic violence.
• Establish data collection to track treatment of LGBTQ victims and defendants.

The Clerk of the Circuit Court is responsible for records related to the criminal and civil legal systems. These county-based officials can:

• Create and implement innovative policies that increase transparency about the way in which the circuit courts operate in their jurisdiction.
• Create and implement programs to facilitate those seeking access to the legal system, including people representing themselves and those seeking critical services like changing the name or gender assignment on an Arkansas birth certificate.

Arkansas's Attorney General serves as the chief legal representative for the state and its agencies. The Attorney General can:

• Set priorities that focus on helping Arkansans who need it and moving our state forward.
• Create and implement innovative programs that address issues like substance use disorder, mental health, and poverty that drive Arkansans into the criminal legal system.
• Work to settle civil rights and liberties cases brought against the state in ways that help bring justice to Arkansans who have been wronged and ensure the state does better going forward.

State legislators help pass laws that protect civil rights and liberties at the state level. These state officials can:

• Pass legislation that can expand or limit the rights and civil liberties of the people in Arkansas. They have the ability to create protections in Arkansas that go beyon laws at the national level. This includes abortion rights, anti-discrimination laws, police regulation, criminal legal system reform, and many more.
• Provide oversight of Executive Branch actions at the state level that impact civil liberties.
• Hold hearings to assist Arkansas residents and legislators in understanding the critical need to protect civil liberties.

Federal Senators and Representatives help pass federal laws that can protect or infringe on civil liberties. These federal officials can:

• Pass legislation that can expand or limit the civil rights and civil liberties of all people in the country – this includes setting national immigration policies, and nationwide laws for voting, LGBTQ rights, disability rights, abortion rights and many others.
• Provide oversight of Executive Branch actions that impact civil liberties.

The Quorum Courts oversee government in the state’s 75 counties. Quorum Court members can:

• Pass countywide ordinances that protect basic civil liberties, including expanding access to mental health and substance use treatment, assuring and protecting free speech, and protecting medical privacy.
• Set budgets for county operations that can advance civil liberties values, including services that divert people from jail to receive the help they need.
• Set county budgets to allocate resources to elections – including increasing the number and accessibility of polling places and paying poll workers.
• Some Quorum Court members or County Judges may be responsible for overseeing their local libraries, including making determinations about challenges to reading material and fostering an environment that is welcoming to all.

Members of a local school board are elected to oversee the operations and budget of the local schools – whether at the elementary or secondary level. Among other things, a local school board member will:

• Create and adopt policies regarding students, including students of color, students who are transgender, and students with disabilities.
• Make decisions about curricula, including the depth of materials available about history, comprehensive sexual health education, and other topics.
• Set disciplinary policies that can enhance or limit the school to prison pipeline.
• Make determinations about surveillance of students, as well police officers within the school.

Members of a city board or council set policies and create priorities for the city or town. Among other things, members of a city/town council will:

• Consider ordinances including policies that inhibit people’s ability to protest, ordinances that restrict or criminalize people experiencing homelessness, or making the town safer for marginalized communities.
• Adopt budgets that create priorities for the municipality, including funding programs that advance civil liberties.
• Set policies for police in the community, including use of force policies and creating civilian oversight of the police.
• Oversee and approve the use of surveillance technology by police in their jurisdiction including automatic license plate readers.

The mayor is the chief executive of a local municipality. Although the powers of a mayor can vary widely (depending on size of the community and local ordinance), the mayor is often the most visible representative and spokesperson for a community. The mayor may:

• Propose or give final authorization to local ordinances – including policies adopted by the city council that impact civil liberties.
• Appoint leaders of municipal departments and members of local boards and commissions who can work in those locales to advance policies that protect and expand civil rights and civil liberties.
• Set the agenda for city council meetings, including ordinances.
• Create relationships with other policy makers and influence policies in Arkansas.

Community Colleges provide a range of programming and services to the public, including offering higher education opportunities. Board members will:

• Create budgets and set policies that determine the range of services to be offered to the community.
• Make decisions on the type of curricula offered.
• Make policies that control how college facilities are open to outside groups for programming and events.
• Create programs to make college more accessible to those with criminal records.