SPRINGDALE -- Lou Reed Sharp, a retired nurse and co-founder of Circle of Life Hospice, is running again for the state House District 80 seat as a Democrat.
The seat is held by Rep. Charlene Fite, R-Van Buren, who has announced her re-election bid. District 80 stretches along the Oklahoma border from Van Buren to Tontitown.
"As a nurse, I worked on the front lines of health care and I saw the impacts of bad public policy on patients," Sharp, 66, said in her announcement. "Family values means access to health care. When I saw patients unable to afford medication, making choices between food and medicine, this inspired me to run for office."
Sharp received less than 27 percent of the vote in a three-candidate general election contest in 2018 between her, Fite and Libertarian candidate Casey Copeland of Prairie Grove. Copeland received less than 10 percent of the vote. Fite won with almost 64 percent of the ballots.
"I believe that you have to stand up for what is right, even when it is hard," Sharp said of the race.
Sharp will be hosting launch parties across the district.
Candidate filing for partisan offices begins at noon Nov. 4 and ends at noon Nov. 12. Party primaries are March 3. The general election is Nov. 3, 2020. State House members serve two-year terms and have an annual salary of $39,400.
Community on 09/04/2019