10/29/18: We've been endorsed by the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette!

Meet Andrew

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​I grew up here in Little Rock. Played Junior Deputy baseball, Penick Boys Club basketball, and learned taekwondo at the dojo in the strip center on Rodney Parham. I loved growing up here. You can't choose where you're born or even where you live, but you can choose what you define as home. No matter where I was over the next several years, Arkansas was always home in my heart.

I went to Duke and Columbia Law School. In between, I spent a service year working on hunger and poverty issues through AmeriCorps VISTA. I learned a lot about what life is like for those on the margins of society, and it sparked a lifelong passion to try to find smart solutions to some of our toughest problems.

​I was working as an attorney in Washington in 2011 when home came calling. The opportunity arose to join my dad and brother at our family real estate business, and I jumped at it. I was recently engaged and knew Arkansas would be a perfect place to raise a family. Luckily, my fiancee, Meghan, agreed. So I came home. Second to proposing to Meghan, it was the best decision I've ever made.

​Since returning to Little Rock, I've been focused on family and community. Meghan and I have two young kids now. ​I served as the President of the Board of Directors of Our House, a nationally recognized nonprofit which has helped countless Arkansas families work their way out of homelessness. I volunteer in Little Rock public schools. And I support projects to help keep Little Rock growing, vibrant, safe, and beautiful. I still make time to watch the Hogs, but now I might have our one-year-old in my arms or our three-year-old climbing on me. Or both.​ 

​I'm running for state representative because I want Arkansas to continue to thrive. I want what I think we all want: stronger schools, economic opportunity, safety and health, and a community founded on decency and ethics. They're simple values, but they're the right ones. By staying true to them, we can leave our kids a state to be proud of. A place which, no matter where they live, they can always call home.

Our Values

Around here, I find that people care far more about real issues than political feuds. Issues like education, opportunity, safety, health, and ethics. When it comes to these essential aspects of living and working in Arkansas -- our core values -- a lot more unites us than divides us. Here are some of my priorities:

Strengthen our educational system. Arkansas started as a poor pioneer state, and it wasn't until the latter part of the 20th century that we began to properly prioritize education. We've made tremendous progress in a short amount of time, but there's a long way to go. Education is the key to our state's future. We should increase teacher pay to recruit and retain better teachers, expand access to pre-K, and offer more technical and vocational training to better prepare students for the modern workforce. Arkansas won't become the #1 state in education overnight, but there's no reason we can't be the fastest-improving.

Economic opportunity for all. To me, opportunity means two things. First, good jobs. There are numerous viable approaches to economic development, but above all, we should invest in our communities to create the kind of places where employers want to locate and employees want to live. The other aspect of opportunity is ensuring that all Arkansans, regardless of income or social status,  have the opportunity to work to build a better life for themselves. I'd work to alleviate regressive taxes on middle-class and working-class Arkansans, protect the social safety net, and unleash the power of free enterprise for the common good through innovative programs like Arkansas Works.

Build a safer and healthier Arkansas. Public safety and public health require public investment. I pledge to support our police officers, fire fighters, hospitals, and medical innovators as we build a safer and healthier Arkansas. The legislature must address our prison overcrowding problem and empower law enforcement to fight crime.  In addition, we must restore adequate funding to UAMS, which is vital to our health care ecosystem, the centerpiece of our efforts against substance abuse, and a major generator of economic development statewide.

Restore decency and ethics. Partisan rancor and outright dishonesty have become the norm in national politics, and we have seen criminal corruption right here in Arkansas. But we don't have to stand for it. I'll work hard for ethics reform, redistricting reform, and campaign finance reform, all with the goal of improving our political process and elevating the quality of our public discourse.

We Arkansans have a lot in common in several important areas. But even where there's consensus on a path forward, we need smart leaders who can listen to constituents, tune out the noise, and deliver sound policy solutions. I'm ready to get to work.

Endorsed BY