LITTLE ROCK — The state Democratic Party says it may refuse to certify would-be state House candidate Fred Smith of Crawfordsville for the ballot.
In the closing minutes of the political filing period Thursday, Smith, a former Harlem Globetrotter, filed to run for House District 50. Smith was elected to the seat in 2010 but resigned early in the 2011 legislative session after he was convicted of felony theft in Chicot County Circuit Court.
A state law prohibits a person with a felony conviction from serving in elected office in Arkansas. State Democratic Party spokeswoman Candace Martin said Friday that Smith’s lawyer is maintaining that his client is eligible to run under the circumstances in his case.
She said the party was still looking into the matter.
“There is a possibility that he may be ineligible to file, and if so then he would forfeit his ($3,000) filing fee and we would not certify his ballot,” Martin said.
Smith signed a statement Thursday that he has never been convicted of a felony. Martin said another question at issue is whether Smith violated a state law against making a false statement on a candidate filing form.