Arkansas General Assembly Snapshot
The State of Arkansas held its elections for a new state house and senate on November 4th 2024. On January 13th 100 state house members and 35 state senators were sworn into office by Arkansas Governor Sarah Huckabee Sanders and began the currently active 95th legislative session of the Arkansas General Assembly. Among the members elected 12 were aged 35 or younger on election day in 2024. Below is a map of these representatives within both chambers of the Arkansas General Assembly.
Arkansas Demographic Background in the 2024 Election
Preliminary estimates provided from CIRCLE at Tufts University indicate that 42% of young people aged 18-29 voted in the 2024 election, with turnout surpassing 50% in key battleground states. Nearly 50 million young citizens were eligible to vote, including over 8 million young voters who turned 18 since the 2022 midterms.
Nationally, according to the Pew Research Center, Millennials in 2020 overtook Baby Boomers as the largest generation in the U.S., comprising 31% of the population, followed closely by Baby Boomers at 30.9%. Generation X makes up 28%, while the Silent Generation is the smallest at 9.9%.
This election showcased the increasing diversity of the youth electorate, with notable differences in voting patterns by race, gender, and issue priorities. Given Arkansas’s unique demographics, voters elected 12 members to the Arkansas General Assembly, who were age 35 and under on election day. Below is information about the generational backgrounds of the current Arkansas General Assembly.
The 95th Arkansas House of Representatives
Below is information covering age dynamics in the recently elected Arkansas House of Representatives.
- the average age of Arkansas House members is 54.46 years
- the youngest Representative Nicholas Burkes was born in 2000
- the oldest Representative Jim Wooten was born in 1941
- 11 Representatives are Young Elected Leaders age 35 or younger as of Election Day 2024
Generational Breakdown
Within the 95th Arkansas House, the vast majority of Representatives come from the Baby Boomer, Generation X or the Millennial generation. While the remaining handful of members come from Generation Z (the youngest) or the Silent Generation (oldest). Scroll below to see the generations in the Arkansas House visualized.
Partisanship in the 95th Arkansas House
The chart below further breaks down the current partisan makeup of the 95th Arkansas House of Representatives. Each dot represents a single member, colored by both party affiliation and whether the legislator qualifies as a Young Elected Leader (YEL)—defined as age 35 or younger at the time of the election. This format provides a visual snapshot of generational and partisan distribution within the chamber, showing how younger legislators are positioned across party lines.
Partisan dynamics in the 95th Arkansas House reflect not only ideological differences but also generational contrasts. The visual below highlights one key distinction: the average age of legislators by party. While both parties include a mix of experience levels, Democratic members of the House are, on average, older than their Republican counterparts. This difference may reflect broader trends in political recruitment, generational turnover, and candidate emergence in recent election cycles.
Young Elected Representatives – Arkansas House
Following the 2024 State Legislative Elections in Arkansas, eleven members aged 35 or under were elected to the 95th Arkansas House of Representatives. Below are all eleven of these members along with information about their local districts and party affiliation.
| Name | District | Birth year (Age on Election Day) | Year first elected to Arkansas House | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
 |
Nicholas Burkes (R) | 14th District -Fayetteville, AR | 2000 (Age 24) | 2024 |
 |
Alyssa R. Brown (R) | 41st District – Heber Springs, AR | 1997 (Age 27) | 2024 |
 |
Wade Andrews (R) | 98th District – Camden, AR | 1995 (Age 29) | 2022 |
 |
Jeremiah Moore (R) | 61st District – Clarendon, AR | 1994 (Age 30) | 2022 |
 |
Zachary Gramlich (R) | 50th District – Fort Smith, AR | 1994 (Age 30) | 2022 |
 |
Brit McKenzie (R) | 7th District – Rodgers, AK | 1991 (Age 33) | 2022 |
 |
Aaron Pilkington (R) | 45th District – Knoxville, AR | 1991 (Age 33) | 2016 |
 |
Tony Furman (R) | 82nd District – Benton, AR | 1990 (Age 34) | 2020 |
 |
Austin McCollum (R) | 8th District – Bentonville, AR | 1990 (Age 34) | 2016 |
 |
Lincoln Barnett (D) |
63rd District – Hughes, AR | 1989 (Age 35) | 2024 |
 |
Steven Walker (R) |
27th District – Horseshoe Bend, AR | 1989 (Age 35) | 2022 |
Photos courtesy of Arkansas General Assembly member roster
Gender in the 95th Arkansas House of Representatives
The 95th Arkansas House of Representatives reflects a range of age and gender dynamics that help shape the composition of the state’s legislative body. 23% of members are women, while men make up the remaining 77%. Age differences between these groups are notable: female Representatives had an average age of 56.63 at the time of the election, compared to 53.79 for their male colleagues.
When examining both gender and party affiliation, additional differences in age emerge within the Arkansas House. Across both parties the mean age of the chamber for women are both above 55 years old. For Republican men the average age is the lowest of these four groups at age 53.34, while Democratic affiliated men had a higher average age of 56.57. These patterns show that age representation in the Arkansas Legislature is varied by both gender and partisan alignment, highlighting varying pathways to political office across demographic groups.
Race and Ethnicity in the 95th Arkansas House of Representatives
The racial and ethnic composition of the 95th Arkansas House of Representatives varies significantly across generations. While White legislators make up the vast majority of the chamber overall, younger generations show greater racial and ethnic diversity than older cohorts. Among Millennials and Generation X, Black legislators account for a sizable minority. This table highlights how race and ethnicity intersect with age in shaping the diversity of the legislative body.
Generations by Race/Ethnicity in the 95th Arkansas House of Representatives
|
Generation Z 1997 – |
Millennial Generation
1981 – 1996 |
Generation X
1965 –1980 |
Boomer Generation
1946 – 1964 |
Silent Generation
1928 – 1945 |
Full Chamber | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| White/Caucasian | 1
(50%) |
20
(86.96%) |
27
(84.38%) |
31
(88.57%) |
1
(100%) |
80
(86.02%) |
| Black/African American | – | 2
(8.7%) |
4
(12.5%) |
3
(8.57%) |
– | 9
(9.68%) |
| Hispanic/Latino | – | 1
(4.35%) |
– | 1
(2.86%) |
– | 2
(2.15%) |
| NA | 1
(50%) |
– | – | – | – | 2
(2.15%) |
| Total (Precent of Congress) | 2
(2.15%) |
23
(24.73%) |
32
(34.41%) |
35
(37.63%) |
1
(1.08%) |
93*
(100%) |
* Seven Members are missing ages, the total number of representatives in the Arkansas House totals 100.
The 95th Arkansas Senate
Below is information covering age dynamics in the recently elected Arkansas Senate.
• the youngest Senator Ben Gilmore who was born in 1992
• the oldest Senator Jane English who was born in 1940
• 1 Senator is a Young Elected Leaders age 35 or younger as of Election Day 2024
Young Elected Senators in the 95th Arkansas Senate
Following the 2024 State Legislative Elections in Arkansas, one member aged 35 or under were elected to the 95th Arkansas Senate. Below are both of these members along with information about their local districts and party affiliation.
| Name | District | Birth Year
(Age on Election Day) |
Year First Elected to the Senate |
|
|---|---|---|---|---|
 |
Ben Gilmore (R) | 1st District
– Crossett, AR |
1992 (Age 32) |
2020 |
Photos courtesy of Arkansas Senate member roster
Partisanship in the 95th Arkansas Senate
In the 95th Arkansas Senate, 35 Senators belong to the Republican Party, and 6 Senators are Democrats. The mean age of Republican State Senators after the 2024 election was 57.28. The mean age of Democratic State Senators after the 2024 election was 52.19. Each generation had different a partisan makeup, below is the breakdown of the party composition for each generation within the 95th Arkansas Senate.
Gender in the 95th Arkansas Senate
Race and Ethnicity in the 95th Arkansas Senate
The racial and ethnic composition of the 95th Arkansas Senate reveals generational variation in representation. While two-thirds of the chamber identifies as White overall, younger generations—especially Millennials—reflect greater diversity. For example 20% of Millennial senators identify as Black. Below is the breakdown of race and ethnicity within the 95th Arkansas Senate
Generations by Race/Ethnicity in the 95th Arkansas Senate
| Millennial Generation | Generation X | Boomer Generation | Silent Generation | Full Chamber | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| White | 4 (80%) | 16 (88.89%) | 9 (90%) | 1 (100%) | 30 (88.24%) |
| Black/African American | 1 (20%) | 2 (11.11%) | 1 (10%) | – | 4 (11.76%) |
| Total | 5 (14.71%) | 18 (52.94%) | 10 (29.41%) | 1 (2.94%) | 34 (100%) |
* Age is missing for one member of the Arkansas Senate, the total number of representatives in the Arkansas Senate totals 35.
Notes
The Young Elected Leaders Project applies the generational categorization of the Pew Research Center:
- Silent Generation: 1928 – 1945
- Baby Boomer Generation: 1946 – 1964
- Generation X: 1965 – 1980
- Millennial Generation: 1981 – 1996
- Generation Z: 1997 – 2012
This analysis is based on data from the most recent state legislative election in Arkansas which took place on November 5th 2024.
Citation Guideline
In referencing the Young Elected Leaders Project in publication please use the following language: “The Young Elected Leaders Project is housed at the Center for Youth Political Participation at The Eagleton Institute of Politics, Rutgers University – New Brunswick.”
Bibliographic Citation For this document
Author: Young Elected Leaders Project
Corresponding Authors: George D. Quinn
Year: 2024
Title: Age in the 95th Arkansas General Assembly