Constitution of Arkansas (2025 publisher edition) — Amendment 73: ARKANSAS TERM LIMITATION AMENDMENT .

Publisher edition notice: This collection preserves the complete constitutional appendix of the Secretary of State’s 2025 Election Laws and Constitution compilation: its preamble, twenty original articles, schedule and 104 published amendments, including annotations and explicit repealed notices. Repealed notices remain historical publisher context. Later amendments have not been independently verified.

Amendment 73

AMEND. 73. ARKANSAS TERM LIMITATION AMENDMENT .
Preamble: The people of Arkansas find and declare that elected officials who remain in office too
long become preoccupied with reelection and ignore their duties as representatives of the people.
Entrenched incumbency has reduced voter participation and has led to an electoral system that
is less free, less competitive, and less representative than the system established by the Founding
Fathers. Therefore, the people of Arkansas, exercising their reserved powers, herein limit the
terms of elected officials.
Publisher’s Notes. This amendment was proposed by
initiative petition and approved at the 1992 general elec-
tion by a vote of 494,326 for and 330,836 against.
Section 3 of this amendment was declared unconstitu-
tional in U.S. Term Limits, Inc. v. Hill, 316 Ark. 251, 872
S.W.2d 349 (1994).
Section 3 of this Amendment has been amended by Ark.
Const. Amend. 76.
Section 2 of this Amendment has been amended by Ark.
Const. Amend. 102.
712 Amend. 71, § 1 CONSTITUTION OF ARKANSAS

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§ 1. Executive Branch.
(a) The Executive Department of this State shall consist of a Governor, Lieutenant Governor,
Secretary of State, Treasurer of State, Auditor of State, Attorney General, and Commissioner of
State Lands, all of whom shall keep their offices at the seat of government, and hold their offices
for the term of four years, and until their successors are elected and qualified.
(b) No elected officials of the Executive Department of this State may serve in the same office
more than two such four year terms.
§ 2. Legislative Branch.
(a) The Arkansas House of Representatives shall consist of members to be chosen every second
year by the qualified electors of the several counties.
(b) The Arkansas Senate shall consist of members to be chosen every four (4) years by the
qualified electors of the several districts.
(c)(1)(A) Except as provided in subdivision (c)(1)(E) of this section, a person first elected as a
member of the General Assembly before January 1, 2021, shall serve no more than sixteen (16)
years, whether consecutive or nonconsecutive.
(B) A member first elected as a member of the General Assembly before January 1, 2021,
who completes his or her sixteenth year of service during a term of office for which he or she
has been elected may serve until the completion of that term of office.
(C) The years of service in both the Senate and the House of Representatives shall be added
together and included to determine the total number of years in office of a member of the
General Assembly first elected as a member of the General Assembly before January 1, 2021.
(D) A partial legislative term served as a result of a special election under Article 5, § 6, or
a two-year term served as a result of apportionment of the Senate shall not be included in
calculating the total number of years served by a member of the General Assembly first elected
as a member of the General Assembly before January 1, 2021.
(E)(i) A person who has served sixteen (16) or more years in the General Assembly under
subdivision (c)(1) of this section shall not be eligible for subsequent service in the General
Assembly until four (4) years after the expiration of the last term of office in the General
Assembly for which he or she was elected.
(ii) Subsequent service in the General Assembly under subdivision (c)(1)(E)(i) of this section
shall be as provided under subdivision (c)(2) of this section.
(2)(A)(i) A person first elected as a member of the General Assembly on or after January 1,
2021, shall serve no more than twelve (12) consecutive years.
(ii) A member of the General Assembly first elected to the General Assembly on or after
January 1, 2021, who serves twelve (12) or more consecutive years shall not be eligible for
subsequent service in the General Assembly until four (4) years after the expiration of the last
term of office in the General Assembly for which he or she was elected.
(B) A member first elected to the General Assembly on or after January 1, 2021, who
completes his or her twelfth consecutive year of service during a term of office for which he or
she has been elected may serve until the completion of that term of office.
(C) Consecutive years of service in both the Senate and the House of Representatives shall
be added together and included to determine the total number of consecutive years in office of
a member first elected to the General Assembly on or after January 1, 2021.
(D)(i) A two-year term served as a result of apportionment of the Senate shall be included in
calculating the total number of consecutive years served by a member of the General Assembly
first elected to the General Assembly on or after January 1, 2021.
(ii) A partial legislative term served as a result of a special election under Article 5, § 6, shall
not be included in calculating the total number of consecutive years served by a member of the
General Assembly first elected to the General Assembly on or after January 1, 2021. [As
amended by Const. Amend. 94; Const. Amend. 102.]
713 Amend. 73, § 2 TERM LIMITATION AMENDMENT

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Publisher’s Notes. Ark. Const. Amend. 94, which
amended this section effective November 5, 2014, was
proposed by H.J.R. 1009 during the 2013 Regular Session
and adopted at the November 2014 general election by a
vote of 428,206 for and 388,459 against.
Before amendment, this section read:
“ § 2. Legislative Branch.
“(a) The Arkansas House of Representatives shall con-
sist of members to be chosen every second year by the
qualified electors of the several counties. No member of the
Arkansas House of Representatives may serve more than
three such two year terms.
“(b) The Arkansas Senate shall consist of members to be
chosen every four years by the qualified electors of the
several districts. No member of the Arkansas Senate may
serve more than two such four year terms.”
Ark. Const. Amend. 102, which amended this section
effective January 1, 2021, was proposed by S.J.R. 15 during
the 2019 Regular Session and adopted at the 2020 general
election by a vote of 647,861 for and 521,979 against.
Before amendment by Amend. 102, this section read:
“ § 2. Legislative Branch.
“(a) The Arkansas House of Representatives shall con-
sist of members to be chosen every second year by the
qualified electors of the several counties.
“(b) The Arkansas Senate shall consist of members to be
chosen every four years by the qualified electors of the
several districts.
“(c)(1) A member of the General Assembly shall serve no
more than sixteen (16) years, whether consecutive or
nonconsecutive.
“(2) A member who completes his or her sixteenth year of
service during a term of office for which he or she has been
elected may serve until the completion of that term of
office.
“(3) The years of service in both the Senate and the
House of Representatives shall be added together and
included to determine the total number of years in office.
“(4) A partial legislative term served as a result of a
special election under Article 5, § 6, or a two-year term
served as a result of apportionment of the Senate shall not
be included in calculating the total number of years served
by a member of the General Assembly. [As amended by
Const. Amend. 94.]”
§ 3. Congressional Delegation.
(a) Any person having been elected to three or more terms as a member of the United States
House of Representatives from Arkansas shall not be certified as a candidate and shall not be
eligible to have his/her name placed on the ballot for election to the United States House of
Representatives from Arkansas.
(b) Any person having been elected to two or more terms as a member of the United States
Senate from Arkansas shall not be certified as a candidate and shall not be eligible to have his/her
name placed on the ballot for election to the United States Senate from Arkansas.
Publisher’s Notes. This section was declared unconsti-
tutional in U.S. Term Limits, Inc. v. Hill, 316 Ark. 251, 872
S.W.2d 349 (1994).
This section has been amended by Ark. Const. Amend.
76.
§ 4. Severability.
The provisions of this Amendment are severable, and if any should be held invalid, the
remainder shall stand.
§ 5. Provisions Self-executing.
Provisions of this Amendment shall be self-executing.
§ 6. Application.
(a) This Amendment to the Arkansas Constitution shall take effect and be in operation on
January 1, 1993, and its provisions shall be applicable to all person thereafter seeking election
to the offices specified in this Amendment.
(b) All laws and constitutional provisions which conflict with this Amendment are hereby
repealed to the extent that they conflict with this amendment.