Arkansas Republican Rick Crawford re-elected to Congress

Written by Kaitlin Barger
Published by KATV

LITTLE ROCK (KATV) — Arkansas Republican Rick Crawford has been re-elected to Congress. He ran unopposed.

Crawford told Talk Business & Politics that he thinks part of the reason he didn’t have an opponent is due to President Donald Trump’s economic policies and the state of the economy.

Crawford of Jonesboro was first elected in 2010. He was the first Republican elected in the state’s 1st congressional district since Reconstruction.

In 2010, he defeated Democrat Chad Causey. He then beat 2nd Judicial District Prosecuting Attorney Scott Ellington in 2012 and Democratic challenger Chintan Desai in 2018.

Crawford graduated from Arkansas State University in 1996 with a degree in Agriculture Business and Economics after four years of service in the United States Army. His professional career has largely focused on agriculture, both in agri-communications and general agri-business.

He has served on a number of committees as well as co-founded multiple caucuses, including the Congressional Rice Caucus and the Congressional Chicken Caucus.

Arkansas’ 1st Congressional district is formed by the eastern border of the state, which is formed by the Mississippi River, and part of the northern border. The area includes the state’s Delta and part of the Ozarks region. Though the district is home to many small, rural communities, cities such as Jonesboro also call this diverse district home.

Crawford made national headlines last year when he temporarily gave up his seat on the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence (HPSCI) to Rep. Jim Jordan, R-Ohio.