Gov. candidate Chris Jones has coffee with locals, talks wrapping the race

Jones at Kollective

With just six days left of voting, Arkansas Governor Candidate Chris Jones (D) is traveling the state once again in an effort to encourage remaining Arkansans to vote. At Kollective Coffee and Tea Wednesday morning, Jones met with locals for coffee.

“I’m energized,” he told The Post. “We were in Northwest Arkansas last night, we’re going to Southwest Arkansas today, we’ll be in Conway tomorrow, we’ll be in Northeast Arkansas on Friday — and then we’re traveling the state again.”

Despite now having toured the state multiple times throughout his campaign, Jones delivered a high and warm energy Wednesday.

“Here’s the deal,” he said when asked about his well-being, “when I think about what’s at stake, my tiredness doesn’t matter.

“When I think about one in four kids that are going to bed hungry; when I think about the families that a $400 bill would tip them into homelessness — that’s what’s in mind. That’s what’s at stake, and it’s game seven of the championship. And so in game seven of the championship you put it all on the line.

Jones at Kollective

“One thing we’ve always said is we are going to leave everything on the field, and that’s what we’re doing now.”

Jones is opposed by Sarah Huckabee Sanders (R).

Arkansas is widely considered a “red state,” Sanders’ father, Mike Huckabee, was a previous governor of Arkansas and Sanders garnered national attention while serving as press secretary in the Trump Administration from 2017-2019.

When asked about Sanders’ reputation for being a shoo-in, Jones said the following.

“She has 100% name recognition, she has huge gobs of money and our elected officials are republican,” he said. “But, we’re not a red state. We’re a non-voting state.

“We have a million Arkansans who could have voted last cycle, but didn’t. … It’s about getting people out to vote.

Attendee

“Now, with all of that, we have closed the gap. It’s a race now. When we started, folks thought we were 30 points behind. Now, if you count the margin of error, we’re within three or four points. That means getting folks out to vote is going to make the difference in this election.

“So I don’t pay attention to the polls, I don’t pay attention to my opponent. I think about what does it take to get our message to every Arkansan and to show a vision that actually says ‘what if we had an Arkansas that worked for all Arkansans? What if we included all Arkansans in our vision of Arkansas?’

“That’s what we’re pushing, and it’s resonating with people.”

Early voting is currently underway. Election Day is Nov. 8. For more information on voting in Garland County, click here.