KUAR | By Tess Vrbin / Arkansas Advocate

Arkansas Republican lawmakers will continue championing Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders’ policy priorities during the 2025 legislative session, while Democrats hope to secure enough support to pass a wide-ranging agenda despite the ongoing GOP supermajority in both chambers, according to legislative leaders.

The Senate will be “largely a photocopy of itself” in January compared to the 2023 session, said Minority Leader Greg Leding, D-Fayetteville. Republicans will hold 29 Senate seats while Democrats will have six for the second consecutive session; Democrats gained one House seat in November and will have 19 to Republicans’ 81.

House Democrats presented their four-pronged policy agenda in November, focusing on maternal health care, mental health care, public education and access to voting and direct democracy. House Minority Leader Andrew Collins, D-Little Rock, has since filed 36 bills and three resolutions addressing aspects of all four priorities. Rep. Denise Ennett, D-Little Rock, is the only other Democrat to have filed legislation.

Education, maternal health, mental health will spark debate among Arkansas lawmakers in 2025