Overview
Independence Watch has obtained 134 documents through a Freedom of Information Act request revealing extensive coordination between Independence County Attorney Daniel Haney and the Arkansas Association of Counties (AAC) to defeat the paper ballot initiative petitions filed across nine Arkansas counties in 2024.
The documents — emails and legal drafts spanning August 7 through September 20, 2024 — show that the AAC served as a centralized legal command post, with its attorneys drafting briefs, sharing case law, coordinating document exchanges between counties, and advising on media strategy. At least ten attorneys across seven counties participated in a standing email group dedicated to defeating the citizen-led paper ballot initiative.
Who Was Involved
The coalition included:
- AAC Attorneys: Mark Whitmore (Chief Counsel), Lindsey Bailey French, and Colin Jorgensen (Litigation Counsel)
- AAC Leadership: Executive Director Chris Villines
- County Attorneys: Daniel Haney (Cleburne/Independence), Kolton Jones (Saline), Chad Brown (Van Buren/Searcy), Larry Kissee (Sharp), Daniel Faulkner and Jason Owens (Johnson County)
- County Clerks: Rachelle Evans (Cleburne), Tracey Mitchell (Independence), Kathy Kordsmeier (Conway), Alisa Black (Sharp)
Key Findings
1. The AAC Drafted Briefs Used in Court
AAC Chief Counsel Mark Whitmore drafted Conway County’s legal brief and distributed it to the entire group on August 15, 2024, writing: “Here’s the draft of Conway co. We hope this is of assistance.” AAC Litigation Counsel Colin Jorgensen drafted an entire section arguing the ballot title was “misleading and confusing” — an argument later adopted in Independence County’s defense and upheld by the Sharp County court.
2. The Tone Was Adversarial, Not Neutral
Rather than providing objective legal counsel, the communications reveal an adversarial posture toward the petitioners:
- Whitmore labeled canvasser affidavits as “Bogus affidavits” in an email subject line (August 8)
- Whitmore described the petition effort as “a cookie cutter operation, and an extraordinarily sloppy one at that” (August 16)
- Haney mocked attorney Clint Lancaster: “And to think that he’s made enough as an attorney to own a Porsche SUV…” (August 16)
- When Conway County won its dismissal, Whitmore emailed: “We won the paper ballots lawsuit.” Attorneys replied “Bam! Well done” and “Congrats!”
3. AAC’s Own Election Law Expert Warned Against the Appeal
On September 20, 2024, AAC attorney Lindsey French explicitly cautioned against appealing the Independence County case:
“My fear is that an unfavorable ruling at the appellate level would undo all of the favorable rulings in the other counties — or at least that’s how Clint would see it, and start causing trouble in those counties all over again.”
French also pointed to Ark. Code Ann. 14-14-916(b), which states that “no court or judge shall entertain jurisdiction of any action or proceeding questioning the validity of any such ordinance or measure until after it shall have been adopted by the people.” This is the same jurisdictional issue now before the Arkansas Supreme Court.
4. Haney Had “Marching Orders”
When French warned against the appeal, Haney responded: “I have ‘marching orders’ to appeal this matter.”
The documents do not identify who gave Haney these orders. This is the subject of a forthcoming FOIA request.
5. Bryan Norris Named as Plaintiff
The Norris v. Mitchell complaint (Case No. 32CV-24-271), filed August 16, 2024, was shared with the entire coalition and analyzed by the group. The case challenges the Independence County Clerk’s determination that the paper ballot initiative petition was insufficient.
Timeline
The coordination unfolded rapidly:
- August 7: Haney first contacts AAC attorneys about the Lancaster resubmission
- August 8-9: AAC shares “bogus affidavits,” Saline County case law, and cross-county documents
- August 13: AAC distributes Benca v. Martin and Miller v. Thurston case summaries
- August 14: Haney announces “It’s begun!” when the Cleburne County lawsuit is filed
- August 15-17: Intensive brief drafting with AAC input; Jorgensen writes “misleading/confusing” argument
- August 21: AAC advises against responding to Arkansas Democrat-Gazette press inquiry
- September 3-5: Van Buren County dismissed; Saline County order signed
- September 18: Sharp County court finds initiative “misleading and confusing”
- September 20: Conway County dismissed; French warns against Independence County appeal; Haney cites “marching orders”
What This Means
These documents show that when citizens in nine Arkansas counties gathered signatures for a paper ballot initiative, the response was not individual county clerks making independent legal determinations. It was a coordinated, multi-county legal operation run through the Arkansas Association of Counties, with AAC attorneys drafting the actual briefs and arguments used to reject the petitions.
The case is now heading to the Arkansas Supreme Court. Today (February 18, 2026), the Independence County Circuit Court ruled it lacked jurisdiction — the very outcome AAC’s Lindsey French predicted 17 months ago.
Independence Watch will continue to publish documents from this FOIA request. The full set of 134 documents is available for public review.
All quotes are taken directly from the FOIA-obtained documents. No external communications were sought for this article.