Mary Lou Slinkard

Mary Lou Spradling Slinkard (born August 1943) is a Republican member of the Arkansas House of Representatives. Since January 2013, she has represented District 92 in Benton County in far northwestern Arkansas. From 2009 to 2013, she was the representative from District 100, now held by another Republican, Karen Hopper.

A native and a resident of Gravette, she is the former clerk of Benton County, a position in which she served for twenty-eight years.^[1] She assumed the representative's position in 2009 and was reelected without opposition in the general elections of 2010 and 2012.^[2]

Slinkard had a primary opponent in 2012, Jim Parsons. Her district includes the city of Bella Vista, once represented by Republican Donna Hutchinson, a former representative from District 98.^[3]

A conservative lawmaker, Slinkard in 2013 voted to override Democratic Governor Mike Beebe's vetoes bills to prohibit abortion after twenty weeks or once fetal heartbeat is detected. She voted to prohibit abortion coverage in state employees health insurance plans. Slinkard also voted to override Beebe's veto of the law requiring photo identification as a condition for voting in Arkansas. She voted to place a spending cap on state spending, but the measure failed by two House votes. She voted to allow university staff to engage in concealed carry of a handgun for campus safety.^[2] Slinkard serves on three House committees: (1) City, County and Local Affairs, (2) Judiciary, and (3) Legislative Joint Audit Committee.^[4] She is a member of the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC).

Slinkard is term-limited under state law in 2014. Former State Senator Kim Hendren, also of Gravette, was elected at the age of seventy-six, to succeed her. Henderen also served in the state House from 2001 to 2003.

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