By Andrew DeMillo | Editor-in-Chief
Happy Election Eve, Advocate readers! We’ve got a packed lineup of stories about the election as we head into the final day of campaigning. That includes a look at how data centers are factoring into the midterms, and a crucial vote over library funding in one county.
And this week’s editor’s commentary explores how a ballot measure vote could be a preview of future political fights.
Be sure to bookmark the Advocate site for Election Day. We’ll have updates from polling sites on Tuesday, and live results from The Associated Press.
The construction site for the Serverfarm data center in Clarksville, Arkansas on July 13, 2026. Construction on it began earlier this year. (Photo by Ainsley Platt/Arkansas Advocate)
GOVERNMENT AND POLITICS
By Ainsley Platt
All politics is local, as the adage goes. In Arkansas, this year’s midterm campaigns are revealing that data center politics is primarily local too.
The Mabel Boswell Memorial Library, part of the Saline County Library System, in Bryant, Arkansas on May 18, 2026 (Photo by Tess Vrbin/Arkansas Advocate)
GOVERNMENT AND POLITICS
By Tess Vrbin
Saline County has been a primary battleground over Arkansas libraries’ funding and content in the past few years, part of a larger fight libraries around the country have faced over efforts to restrict access to books addressing race, sexuality or other controversial subjects.
Voters cast their ballots during the March 3, 2026 primary in Little Rock, Arkansas (Photo by Katie Adkins/Arkansas Advocate)
COMMENTARY
By Andrew DeMillo
The outcome of the vote on Issue 3 could reveal a great deal about the state of Arkansas’ politics, and the divides confronting legislators when they meet next year.
MORE NEWS
PHOTO GALLERY: Views from the campaign trail in Arkansas | Arkansas Advocate
FACT FOCUS: Misinformation about voting spreads before Election Day | The Associated Press
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