Republican Tom Cotton ousts Arkansas Sen. Mark Pryor


Republican Tom Cotton turned a once-close contest into a cakewalk, thumping incumbent Sen. Mark Pryor (D) in Arkansas' important Senate race. CNN and NBC called the race for Cotton as soon as polls closed.
The race was one of the most hard-fought contests in the country, and in the early going it seemed like either candidate had a decent chance to win. Yet in March, Pryor's critics piled on him for saying Cotton, a military veteran, felt a "sense of entitlement" because of his service. Pryor never recovered, and polls in the closing weeks of the campaign showed him trailing by considerable margins.
President Obama's horrific sub-30 approval rating in the state certainly didn't help Pryor either.
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
In picking off Pryor, Cotton pushed the GOP closer to its first Senate majority since 2006. Republicans now need a net gain of only four more seats to flip the upper chamber.
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Jon Terbush is an associate editor at TheWeek.com covering politics, sports, and other things he finds interesting. He has previously written for Talking Points Memo, Raw Story, and Business Insider.
-
RFK Jr. names new CDC head as staff revolt
Speed Read Kennedy installed his deputy, Jim O'Neill, as acting CDC director
-
DC prosecutors lose bid to indict sandwich thrower
Speed Read Prosecutors sought to charge Sean Dunn with assaulting a federal officer
-
White House fires new CDC head amid agency exodus
Speed Read CDC Director Susan Monarez was ousted after butting heads with HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. over vaccines
-
DOGE put Social Security data at risk, official says
Speed Read DOGE workers made the personal information of hundreds of millions of Americans vulnerable to identity theft
-
Court rejects Trump suit against Maryland US judges
Speed Read Judge Thomas Cullen, a Trump appointee, said the executive branch had no authority to sue the judges
-
Trump expands National Guard role in policing
Speed Read The president wants the Guard to take on a larger role in domestic law enforcement
-
Trump says he's firing Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook
Speed Read The move is likely part of Trump's push to get the central bank to cut interest rates
-
Abrego released from jail, faces Uganda deportation
Speed Read The wrongly deported Kilmar Abrego García is expected to be detained at an ICE check-in and deported to Uganda