BENTON COUNTY : District 99 contest far from being dirty fight
Posted on Sunday, May 11, 2008
BENTONVILLE — Vickey Boozman said she didn’t know anyone else was running for a state House seat in District 99 when she decided to make a run for it.
She thought she was getting a head start by organizing her campaign last summer.
“I called some friends... and one of those friends said, ‘I think someone’s already announced for that position, ’” she recalled. “And I said, ‘ Oh, surely not. Not this early.’” Indeed, Benton County Justice of the Peace Tim Summers of Bentonville had stood on the courthouse steps already to say he’d run to succeed term-limited Rep. Horace Hardwick. Summers, who switched from the Democratic to Republican party before making the bid, is endorsed by Hardwick.
Hardwick’s two predeces- sors — David Hausam and Jim von Gremp — also endorsed Summers. All are Bentonville Republicans who, like Summers, have had the support and financial backing of members of the Walton family of Wal-Mart Stores Inc. and several of the corporation’s retired executives.
Boozman is the widow of Dr. Fay Boozman, a former state senator who was director of the Arkansas Department of Health when he died. Her brother-inlaw is U. S. Rep. John Boozman, a Rogers Republican.
The race between Summers and Boozman, two political powerhouses at least on the Benton County scale, has been one of the most closely followed in Arkansas, but there hasn’t been a lot to see, at least so far. To say it’s been civil would be an understatement.
Boozman, who lives in Cave Springs, uses the story of her planned announcement to illustrate her point that she didn’t get in the race to try to take down Summers.
When she realized he was running, she went to see Summers last year, meeting him for the first time.
“He was very gracious. I think you could say we’ve developed a bit of a friendship through this,” Boozman said.
Summers almost always refers to his opponent as “Miss Vickey.” “I know she’ll do a good job if she’s the choice,” Summers said. At a forum on Friday, he called her “a classy lady.” There’s no Democrat in the race, so the primary winner is the likely successor to Hardwick.
Summers spent most of his career in the banking and insurance businesses but went to work for Decision Point Inc., an alcohol and drug-treatment facility, in 2005.
He became executive director this year.
He served on the Bentonville City Council in the 1970 s and again in the 1980 s before running for Benton County Quorum Court in 1994. He’s the Finance Committee chairman and says he points to his years of stewardship over the county budget if people question his conservatism because of his party switch.
“I’ve been preparing for this for 20 years,” he said of his government experience.
Boozman is a homemaker, and she was a partner in her husband’s politics. He died in a farm accident in 2005. She’s volunteered on numerous campaigns and has managed two of her brother-in-law’s congressional bids.
Boozman said she hopes there’s no confusion that she’s the congressman’s wife (John Boozman’s wife is Cathy ). She makes a point of saying she’s Fay Boozman’s widow on her campaign literature.
Every once in a while, a voter will ask her where she “fits in” to the family, she said.
Summers said he figures he’s at somewhat of a disadvantage simply because of his opponent’s last name.
“We know the Boozman name is well-respected, and people understand that the Boozmans have been associated with the Republican Party and conservatism for many years,” Summers said.
Boozman said she never discusses Summers’ party identification, even when asked if there are differences between her and her opponent.
“I am thrilled that he’s come over” to the Republican Party, she said.
Summers said he’s getting some of his local support because the Legislature would have no Bentonville member if he doesn’t win. The area’s senator, Kim Hendren, is a Gravette Republican.
Boozman said it shouldn’t matter that she’s a few miles down the road in Cave Springs because she’d represent Bentonville, as well.
“You have got to live somewhere,” she said. perts and others have agreed. Boozman opposed it, saying she thinks companies will find a way to charge consumers for the tax.
PRIORITIES Boozman said her first priority if elected would be constituent service. Summers said his No. 1 priority would be to take the remaining 3 percent sales tax off groceries. He said he’s not sure what kinds of cuts should be made in the state budget, if necessary, to make up for the loss of state revenue. If he wins the election, he said, he’d “start going to school” on understanding the state budget. Boozman said she also would favor cutting the rest of the tax on groceries, which she says is “simply wrong.” ETHICS Boozman said ethics rules pertaining to lawmakers should be changed. “Personal gift-giving in any form to legislators should become a thing of the past,” she said. Summers said that from what he knows, the ethics rules are sufficient.
“We make financial disclosures, and if we get gifts or anything, we disclose those,” he said. “We need to be always up front and open about everything we do as legislators.” Boozman said that when her husband was in the Legislature, she gave back or mailed back such gifts as coffee mugs, bags and other items that lobbyists often give all the legislators. She said she’d do the same.
Both oppose the proposed lottery amendment and favor the proposed initiated act to ban unmarried cohabiting couples from adopting children or becoming foster parents.
FINANCES Their campaign fundraising was close to even at the end of March. Boozman had raised $ 16, 606. Her biggest contributors included $ 1, 000 each from Jim Sharp of Fayetteville, Hettie Lue Brooks of Hot Springs and Linda Brown of Siloam Springs. Summers had raised $ 15, 020. His biggest contributors included $ 1, 000 each from Bentonville residents Judy Ward, Jim Walton, Lynne Walton, David Glass, Robert Bogle and Bill Fergus. PCT Inc. of Bentonville, a tooland-die manufacturer, also gave $ 1, 000. Jim Walton is the chairman of Arvest Bank Group and the son of Wal-Mart founder Sam Walton. He also gave $ 500 to Boozman. “They try to be fair and give to both because they don’t know who’s going to win,” Summers said. House District 99 REPUBLICAN NOMINATION Vickey Boozman Age: 61 Family: Three children Occupation: Homemaker Education: Bachelor’s degree in business administration from University of Central Arkansas; associate of arts degree from Westark College (now University of Arkansas at Fort Smith ) Previous political experience: None Military experience: None Are the state’s eminent domain laws sufficient to protect property owners ? Property owners are protected when property cannot be taken for commercial or other private use and when the property owner is guaranteed full market value on any given day.
What would be your No. 1 priority if elected ? My first priority would be constituent service. My first legislative priority will be anything of benefit to the family or family values. Should ethics rules pertaining to lawmakers be changed ?
Yes. Personal gift-giving in any form to legislators should become a thing of the past. Tim Summers Age: 63 Family: Wife, Peggy; one daughter Occupation: Executive director, Decision Point Education: Berryville High School, attended University of Arkansas at Fayetteville and University of Tulsa Previous political experience: Benton County Quorum Court, 1995-present; Bentonville City Council, 1975-78 and 1982-83 Military experience: Arkansas Army National Guard, 1962-66 Are the state’s eminent domain laws sufficient to protect property owners ? I believe so. I believe we’re protected. You rely on the justice system and common sense. We don’t need more regulation on that. What would be your No. 1 priority if elected ? To remove the 3 percent sales tax on food. Should ethics rules pertaining to lawmakers be changed ? From what I know, they’re sufficient. We make financial disclosures, and if we get gifts or anything, we disclose those. I believe strongly in following and supporting the [Freedom of Information ] laws.
Arkansas Democrat-Gazette TAXES One of the few issues on which the two have disagreed in public forums is the Legislature’s recent decision to increase the severance tax on natural gas. Summers was for it because it would finance highways and he believes the increase won’t trickle down to consumers, a view with which industry ex-
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