Given the chance, vote

Benton County special election has merits

Suffrage is a precious privilege, among the most hallowed rights in the annals of United States history. It’s often too easy to forget many people on this earth don’t have much of a role in how their government functions.

The vote in the United States holds unequaled status among the mechanisms of democracy. As imperfectly imple- mented among U.S. citizens as the vote has been, it still represents a rock-solid foundation of self-government.

Exercising one’s vote is a responsibility of citizenship. But is that only true in general elections, such as the one set for Nov. 6?

For as long as we can recall, there’s been this false notion among some that the only genuine, legitimate time to settle a matter of public interest is at a general election, i.e., an election already scheduled for other purposes on which a ballot question might be attached. Lately, that notion has been bandied about as Benton County justices of the peace try to determine the best way to poll county voters about a plan to build and pay for a new facility for the local judicial system.

Anyone paying much attention for the last, oh, five years or so has surely gotten the hint that Benton County needs a solution for its justice system — criminal and civil courts. Right now, those courts are spread among different buildings with quarters too close not just for the staffs but also for the families and friends of people involved in the various judicial proceedings. Hang out in a courthouse long enough and it becomes clear that the adversarial nature of cases can stretch emotional tensions. Forcing the different sides into close proximity is like packing hay into a barn with a magnifying glass as a roof. Sooner or later, something’s going to ignite.

County Judge Barry Moehring and the members of the Quorum Court have made significant progress on a plan that values security and operational efficiency while also preparing Benton County for expansions in the coming decades as the population continues its remarkable growth. A new courts building at 2nd and B streets downtown will united the disjointed courts operation in one building, with shell space that can be finished in future years as needed.

It is unquestionably a need. The question to be answered by county voters is whether they’re willing to pay for it.

The Quorum Court on May 24 voted 9-5 to pursue a temporary 1/8 percent sales tax to fund construction on a $30 million courts building. Its members favored a special election for March 12 for voters to consider the project and the sales tax question, but they postponed the required second and third readings of that ordinance until November or later.

It’s a tax and it’s Benton County, so naturally there were outspoken opponents to both the tax — even though the question was about calling the election, not passing the tax — and the use of a special election as opposed to piggybacking on the November general election.

Justice of the Peace Mike McKenzie opposed both, in part on the well-worn argument that fewer people turn out for special elections. “If we’re going to raise taxes, we ought to have the maximum number of people voting on it,” he said.

Michael Kalagias, chairman of the Libertarian Party in Benton County, and others accused county leaders of trying to “sneak” the tax increase past voters by calling a special election.

We respect the difference of opinion, and respectfully disagree.

Who will be eligible to vote in the March 12 election? Is it some special subset of county residents more likely to favor the project and the related sales tax? Not at all. Rather, every single voter who is eligible to vote in November will have every right to cast a ballot on March 12, too.

As to the notion that Benton County is trying to sneak the courts facility project by county residents? This project has been debated directly for about five years and sporadically for about 30. The only county residents who haven’t heard about it have gravestones over their heads or are so disconnected they won’t pay attention even if the county promised to drive a voting machine to their front door on Election Day. It’s like suggesting Walmart sneaks its shareholders meeting by Northwest Arkansas residents every year. It’s virtually impossible to miss it.

There are benefits of a special election. November’s general election will have multiple constitutional amendments, races for statewide and local offices and a state Supreme Court runoff that promises to be a nasty showdown of out-of-state, monied special interests. A special election gives proponents and opponents their best opportunity to fully explain the pros and cons of the proposal outside the ample noise that will accompany the November election.

Naturally, those opposed to the project or the tax know people less informed about the proposal are more likely to vote against it. A general election question will draw in voters motivated by other races or ballot questions who, conventional wisdom suggests, will be more willing to oppose a tax proposal. Proponents of the project, likewise, prefer their odds in a special election in which people more knowledgeable about the project are likely to show up.

What, precisely, is stopping any voter in Benton County from voting in a special election? If they care about the issue, pro or con, they have every bit as much opportunity to cast a ballot no matter when the election falls. At least the election being considered is in March, not the middle of summer when some governments have scheduled special elections. In those cases, an argument about shrinking the size of the turnout is much stronger.

The March election, if the Quorum Court follows through with it, will give people on both sides of the issue an opportunity to get their perspectives out — heck, they might even write a letter to the editor or two between now and then. At the end of the day, it’s up to voters whether they want to take advantage of their right and privilege to cast a ballot.