A new era is approaching for the Baxter County Sheriff’s Office, and all three candidates vying to lead the department appeared together Saturday night for their first political event since the close of the filing period on Tuesday.
A Meet the Candidates dinner, hosted by the Baxter County Republicans at the Elks Lodge, brought out nearly every Republican running for county office, along with a large crowd of residents. State candidates for Secretary of State and Land Commissioner were also in attendance and given time to speak.
Sheriff John Montgomery, the longest serving sheriff in both county and state history, attended the event but was not campaigning, having previously announced his retirement at the end of his current term. Henry Campfield, Brian Davis, and Mark Hollingsworth are now competing to replace him and will appear on the March 3, 2026 Republican primary ballot.
All three sheriff’s candidates addressed the audience Saturday, each given ten minutes to outline their priorities for the office. Earlier in the evening, KTLO’s Heather Loftis spoke with the candidates to learn more about their campaigns.
Campfield speaks during candidate dinner.
Henry Campfield, who ran against Montgomery in 2022, is seeking the office again. Campfield has been in law enforcement since 2002 when he started at the Baxter County Sheriff’s Office as a reserve deputy. He went on to work as a patrol deputy there, was Police Chief at Flippin for five years and is currently a Patrol Sergeant with the Mountain Home Police Department.
Campfield says becoming Baxter County Sheriff is something he has worked towards for his entire career and says increased training on all levels needs to be addressed.
Listen:
Davis shares his plans should he be elected sheriff.
Brian Davis has over 33 years of law enforcement experience, with 26 of those in leadership roles. For the first 19 years of his career, Davis worked in Forrest City.
For the last 14 years, Brian has been employed at the Baxter County Sheriff’s Office. He has moved up the ranks from Patrol Deputy to Patrol Corporal to Patrol Sergeant, to currently holding the rank of Patrol Lieutenant. He is the Commander of the Patrol Division, and a member of the Sheriff’s Management Team and Command Staff.
Davis says he wants to hit the ground tackling the drug problem in the County as well a new program to assist senior citizens.
Listen:
Hollingsworth and KTLO’s Heather Loftis discuss his campaign.
Mark Hollingsworth, a longtime law enforcement officer with more than 40 years of experience, currently serves as chief deputy of the Marion County Sheriff’s Department. He previously spent 36 years with the Arkansas State Police, retiring in 2021 as a major and commander of the agency’s Criminal Investigation Division. He also represented the State Police on the FBI Joint Terrorism Task Force and was coordinator for the Arkansas AMBER Alert program.
Hollingsworth says continued professional leadership and increased transparency is what he plans to bring to the residents of Baxter County.
Listen:
Stay tuned to KTLO, Classic Hits and The Boot News for a coming part two feature on the Baxter County Republican hosted dinner with a focus on incumbent and challenger for Baxter County Judge.
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