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Arkansas Supreme Court issues per curiam orders in two ballot-related cases
Summary
On Sept. 5, 2024, the Arkansas Supreme Court issued per curiam orders in CV-24-453 and CV-24-492, dismissing an emergency motion as moot in a challenge over ballot language and resolving motions related to a separate case involving Cherokee Nation Entertainment and ballot committees.
The Arkansas Supreme Court on Sept. 5, 2024, issued per curiam orders in two cases related to ballot language and challenges, dismissing an emergency motion as moot in Oscar Stilley v. John Thurston (CV-24-453) and taking related motions in CV-24-492 for additional consideration.
The orders affect pending litigation over whether a popular name and ballot title must appear on ballots and whether separate petitioners can be dismissed or consolidated in related proceedings. The matters bear on how contested ballot language is presented to Arkansas voters and on procedural questions about which parties will remain before the court.
In CV-24-453 (Oscar Stilley v. John Thurston; Arkansans for Limited Government), the court recorded that a petitioner’s emergency motion to compel the Secretary of State to include the popular name and ballot title on the ballot was dismissed as moot. The per curiam entry notes that Chief Justice Kemp, C.J., would have granted relief pursuant to Cowles v. Thurston, 2024 Ark. 121, and that Justices Baker and Hudson, JJ., would also have granted relief on similar grounds (both noted as dissents to the per curiam disposition). That entry cites proceedings from Aug. 22, 2024.
A separate per curiam entry on the same docket (CV-24-453) records that a motion to dismiss was granted and that the mandate was ordered to issue immediately; the entry specifies that Baker, J., did not participate in that decision. The per curiam language does not set forth a vote tally or a recorded majority opinion beyond the order.
In CV-24-492 (Jennifer McGill, Individually and on Behalf of the Arkansas Canvassing Compliance Committee; and Cherokee Nation Entertainment, LLC v. John Thurston), the court recorded that intervenors’ motion to dismiss a separate petitioner, Cherokee Nation Entertainment, LLC, was taken with the case. The entry notes that Justice Webb, J., would deny the motion to dismiss, and it references proceedings from Aug. 30, 2024.
The orders reference Cowles v. Thurston, 2024 Ark. 121, which dissents cited in CV-24-453 rely upon; the per curiam entries themselves do not include extended reasoning in the transcripted lines provided. The orders do not specify further relief, timelines for implementation beyond the immediate mandate in CV-24-453, or additional procedural steps for CV-24-492.
Court orders filed Sept. 5, 2024, thus resolve or consolidate aspects of ongoing litigation over ballot language and party status; the transcripted entries do not include oral argument text or additional factual findings beyond the summary dispositions noted above.
