Our Northeast Arkansas families deserve a brighter future.

Times are tough — for our families and especially for our kids. Our Senator ought to be focused on the issues we face every day in District 20, and I’m running to ensure we get the representation that we deserve. It’s up to us to build a brighter Arkansas – can I count on you?

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If we win this race, Jonesboro and Bono will have a true advocate in the State Senate. We need you to join the team.

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Nearly 20 years in the classroom have prepared me for this moment.

In my classroom, I am inspired everyday by the hope and optimism our kids possess. They share their life ambitions, their stories, their fears, and wishes with me. I have always told them that with hard work, they can achieve whatever they set their minds to. I fear that our state will be unable to fulfill that promise to our kids. We must create a future for our state where hard work can lead any student in our state to success, no matter where they get their start. Every kid, in every public school in Arkansas, deserves a pathway to success.

Now, we aren’t investing in our kids’ futures the way we ought to be or the way we used to.

Our kids here in Northeast Arkansas don’t have the same opportunities that I grew up with. The guarantees we had about having a better life than our parents aren’t promises we can make anymore. Arkansas isn’t providing enough for our kids.

For close to two decades, I have worked in our schools as an early childhood educator.

I’ve taught Pre-K in Jonesboro and Elementary in Marked Tree and Brookland. I know firsthand how decisions our leaders make affect our children and their futures. Our kids suffer most when our legislators choose to defund our public schools, rather than invest in them. With each budget cut, another student’s otherwise bright future dims.

This was one of the closest Senate races in 2022.

And I’m running to win. This campaign will be the most effective and responsible in the state, and we’ll make every dollar count. Can you chip in to support us?

Support this campaign

"I’m running for Senate to invest in our public schools, protect our children, and support our families. Northeast Arkansas has so much promise, and our Senator should work in our best interest. "

Strong and New Economic Plan forour country and people

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Digital Banking

Modern Technology

Reserve Growth

Strong and New Economic Plan forour country and people

Digital Banking

Modern Technology

Reserve Growth

Strong and New Economic Plan forour country and people

Digital Banking

Modern Technology

Reserve Growth

Strong and New Economic Plan forour country and people

Digital Banking

Modern Technology

Reserve Growth

Strong and New Economic Plan forour country and people

Digital Banking

Modern Technology

Reserve Growth

Strong and New Economic Plan forour country and people

Digital Banking

Modern Technology

Reserve Growth

Strong and New Economic Plan forour country and people

Digital Banking

Modern Technology

Reserve Growth

Strong and New Economic Plan forour country and people

Digital Banking

Modern Technology

Reserve Growth

Strong and New Economic Plan forour country and people

Digital Banking

Modern Technology

Reserve Growth

Like you and your family, I know the value of a hard day’s work.

I have worked since I was 16 years old, starting at Captain D’s on Red Wolf Boulevard. I worked the night shift so I could balance my classwork. I maintained jobs at local grocery stores and waitressing in our local restaurants, all to pay my way through college.

I was proud to earn my teaching degree at Arkansas State University and to begin my teaching career right here in Northeast Arkansas.

Like so many of my neighbors, I learned what hard work was from watching my parents. My mother taught public school for over 30 years, and my father worked for years at the Caraway Post Office on East Street.

Our entire community knows what grit means. No one here is expecting a free pass, but we deserve a fair shot at prosperity. Our Senator should fight to ensure every person in Jonesboro and Bono has the opportunity to get a good education and earn fair wages for their hard work.

I graduated from Jonesboro High School in 1996 – after being pregnant most of my senior year.

It wasn’t easy to be expecting a child as I worked hard to earn my education. Some folks doubted my ability to be a mother and a high school graduate.

Weeks after my high school graduation ceremony, I was blessed with my beautiful daughter, Lydia, now 27 years old.

My teen pregnancy gave me confidence to assert myself for the sake of someone other than myself. To this day, I attribute my successes in life to the lessons I learned from my parents, my teen pregnancy and the encouragement from my support system. I’m a better mother and a better educator because of the hardships I’ve experienced.

Our state has one of the highest rates of teen pregnancy in the entire nation.

Few expecting mothers don't have that same fortune of a caring support system. We can do better because those mothers and those soon-to-be-born children deserve a bright future right here in Arkansas. Arkansas’s maternal mortality rate should not be the worst in the country.

We should strengthen our healthcare system, rather than weakening our safety nets that keep so many Arkansans afloat. Of the 427,000 Arkansans slashed from our Medicaid rolls, many of those were kids, and some of those were my students. This fight is personal to me.

We have to do better in providing affordable, accessible healthcare to all Arkansans.

As your Senator, I promise to make sure my votes will always support strong families and a good healthcare system.

Get updates about our campaign.

We need you to win this extremely close race.

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What you need to know to vote:

On Tuesday, November 5, 2024, we need all the folks in Jonesboro and Bono to show up and vote.

Important Dates

Deadline to Register to Vote in the Primary Election: February 5, 2024
Early Voting Begins for Primary Election:
February 19, 2024
Primary Election:
March 5, 2024
Deadline to Register to Vote in the General Election:
October 7, 2024
Early Voting Begins for General Election:
October 21, 2024
General Election:
November 5, 2024

Senate District 20

This district was created by the Arkansas Board of Apportionment after the 2020 Census. It includes the majority of Jonesboro, the western parts of Nettleton, and the entirety of Bono, Pleasant Grove and Herndon Township.
Southern Boundary: Wade Drive
Eastern Boundary: Craighead 901 St / Craighead 741 St Western Boundary: Lawrence County line
Northern Boundary: Greene County line

Join the team!

This campaign needs you to be a volunteer

This fight is about local libraries and good leadership. It's time to protect our public services that serve so many, and we do that by electing someone who will be a public servant, instead of a bully.

Become a Volunteer

News from the Campaign

Check out our most recent campaign releases.

By:

Erika for Arkansas

Nov 9, 2023

Our Northeast Arkansas families deserve a brighter future.

SIGN UP

Nearly 20 years in the classroom have prepared me for this moment.

Now, we aren’t investing in our kids’ futures the way we ought to be or the way we used to.

For close to two decades, I have worked in our schools as an early childhood educator.

This was one of the closest Senate races in 2022.

Strong and New Economic Plan forour country and people

Digital Banking

Modern Technology

Reserve Growth

Strong and New Economic Plan forour country and people

Digital Banking

Modern Technology

Reserve Growth

Strong and New Economic Plan forour country and people

Digital Banking

Modern Technology

Reserve Growth

Strong and New Economic Plan forour country and people

Digital Banking

Modern Technology

Reserve Growth

Strong and New Economic Plan forour country and people

Digital Banking

Modern Technology

Reserve Growth

Strong and New Economic Plan forour country and people

Digital Banking

Modern Technology

Reserve Growth

Strong and New Economic Plan forour country and people

Digital Banking

Modern Technology

Reserve Growth

Strong and New Economic Plan forour country and people

Digital Banking

Modern Technology

Reserve Growth

Strong and New Economic Plan forour country and people

Digital Banking

Modern Technology

Reserve Growth

Like you and your family, I know the value of a hard day’s work.

I graduated from Jonesboro High School in 1996 – after being pregnant most of my senior year.

Our state has one of the highest rates of teen pregnancy in the entire nation.

We have to do better in providing affordable, accessible healthcare to all Arkansans.

Get updates about our campaign.

What you need to know to vote:

Important Dates

Senate District 20

This campaign needs you to be a volunteer

News from the Campaign

Erika Askeland, Veteran Early Childhood Educator, Launches Arkansas Senate Campaign to Challenge Radical GOP Senator Dan Sullivan