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The 2020 United States Senate election in Arkansas was held on November 3, 2020, to elect a member of the United States Senate to represent the state of Arkansas, concurrently with the 2020 U.S. presidential election, as well as other elections to the U.S. Senate, elections to the United States House of Representatives and various state and local elections.

Libertarian challenger Ricky Dale Harrington Jr. defeated Republican incumbent Tom Cotton in an upset. Harrington became the first ever Libertarian candidate to get elected to the Senate, and the first Senator from Arkansas who wasn't a Democrat or a Republican. Harrington won eighteen counties, eight of which were also won by Democratic nominee Joe Biden. The historic victory is largely attributed to mismanagment by the Cotton campaign, increased turnout among minority voters and the broad appeal of Libertarian policies to groups of Democrat and Republican voters alike.

Republican primary
Cotton was unopposed for the Republican nomination.

Nominee

 * Tom Cotton, incumbent U.S. senator

Nominee

 * Ricky Dale Harrington Jr., Christian missionary and prison chaplain

Democratic Party
Josh Mahony was the only candidate to file for the Democratic primary; however, he withdrew his candidacy on November 12, 2019. Because Mahony dropped out after the filing deadline, the Democratic Party of Arkansas could only nominate a replacement if the candidate died, became seriously ill, left the state, or filed for another office. As a result, the Democratic Party of Arkansas was not able to fill the vacancy. A memo from the Cotton campaign to supporters detailed a strategy of sitting on opposition research regarding Mahony's employment history until after the filing deadline had passed.

Withdrawn

 * Josh Mahony, nonprofit executive, former chair of the Fayetteville Airport Commission, and nominee for Arkansas's 3rd congressional district in 2018

Declined

 * Wesley Clark, retired General, former Supreme Allied Commander of NATO, and 2004 Democratic presidential candidate

Withdrawn

 * Dan Whitfield, progressive activist. On June 25, 2020, Whitfield's petition to run was denied for failing to gain enough signatures, an effort that was complicated by the COVID-19 pandemic. Whitfield filed an appeal with the United States Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit in an attempt to overturn this ruling. He officially suspended his campaign on October 1.

General election
Cotton's campaign has been widely criticised as complacent, despite polls showing a narrower race than expected the incumbent Senator chose not to attend the debates hosted by Arkansas PBS and rarely hit the campaign trail. Harrington spoke of overcoming the gridlock in Washington, his views of fiscal responsibility, non-interventionism and criminal justice reform, often criticising Joe Biden and Donald Trump alike. This outsider message stuck with many younger and minority voters, meanwhile with the campaigns more conservative strokes striking a chord with more libertarian Republicans.