Arkansas Secretary of State Cole Jester announces bid for land commissioner
Jester was appointed as secretary of state by Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders after the previous secretary, John Thurston, was elected to the state treasurer position. Because Jester was appointed to the office, he can not run for reelection to that position.
Cole Jester takes oath as new Arkansas secretary of state
Prior to his secretary appointment, Jester was legal counsel for the governor's office. Sanders has endorsed him for his land commissioner bid.
'Cole Jester did a fantastic job as my legal counsel, and he has been America's best Secretary of State,' Sanders said. 'He will serve and protect Arkansas well as our Land Commissioner. He has my full endorsement.'
Arkansas treasurer race goes to Thurston
Jester cited his background as a constitutional lawyer when he decided to run for the land commissioner spot.
'After prayerful consideration, I am excited to announce my campaign for Arkansas Commissioner of State Lands,' he said. 'Arkansas is the best state in the country, and we are going to work to make it even better. I became a constitutional lawyer to fight for conservative change, and I will continue to do that each and every day. We are going to keep our tax dollars in state; investigate Chinese influence near state lands; and support our natural resources at every turn.'
Arkansas Secretary of State Cole Jester election security report shows winners, losers
Jester launched a website and released a video on Wednesday about his election bid.
Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
4 hours ago
- Yahoo
Taiwan president's Americas trip shelved over Beijing's objections
[Source] Taiwanese President Lai Ching-te has reportedly shelved his planned August trip to diplomatic allies in the Americas amid reports that the Trump administration blocked a New York stopover after Beijing raised objections. State of play: Lai was expected to travel to Belize, Guatemala and Paraguay — Taiwan's remaining diplomatic allies in the region — with U.S. stopovers planned for New York and Dallas. But on Monday, his office cited recovery from recent typhoon damage and ongoing U.S. tariff discussions as reasons he has 'no plans to travel overseas in the near future.' Embassy officials in Guatemala and Paraguay later confirmed the visit was postponed indefinitely. Meanwhile, sources reportedly told the Financial Times that the U.S. blocked Lai's New York visit after Beijing objected to Washington. Trade talk timing: The move comes amid Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent's trade talks with Chinese Vice-Premier He Lifeng in Stockholm as the Trump administration sets its eyes on a possible summit with President Xi Jinping. Bessent, however, denied any link between the travel matter and trade negotiations, saying, 'We are very careful to keep trade and national security separate.' Meanwhile, State Department spokesperson Tammy Bruce dismissed the reports, saying the situation is 'hypothetical' and that 'there have been no plans — travel plans for the president.' The big picture: The reported decision has drawn bipartisan criticism, with former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi warning that it sends 'a dangerous signal' showing the U.S. 'can be bullied by Beijing into silence on Taiwan.' House Democrat Raja Krishnamoorthi called it 'another example of the Trump administration caving to China in hopes of reaching a trade deal.' Paraguay, for its part, also faces domestic pressure, with ruling party congressman Hugo Meza saying the country is 'wasting time' maintaining ties with Taiwan. Trending on NextShark: The tensions follow Lai's declaration in June that 'Taiwan is of course an independent country," prompting China's Taiwan Affairs Office to denounce his statements as 'heresy,' 'hostile' and 'separatist.' This story is part of The Rebel Yellow Newsletter — a bold weekly newsletter from the creators of NextShark, reclaiming our stories and celebrating Asian American voices. Trending on NextShark: Subscribe free to join the movement. If you love what we're building, consider becoming a paid member — your support helps us grow our team, investigate impactful stories, and uplift our community. Subscribe here now! Trending on NextShark: Download the NextShark App: Want to keep up to date on Asian American News? Download the NextShark App today!
Yahoo
6 hours ago
- Yahoo
Where is my Dothan polling place?
DOTHAN, Ala (WDHN) –Polls in Dothan open on Tuesday, August 5, from 7:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. See where your polling place is below: District 1: 1A-Andrew Belle Community Center – 1270 Lake Street 1B-Walton Park Recreation Center – 122 Walton Park Drive 1C-Vaughn-Blumberg Center – 2715 Flynn Road District 2: 2A-Roy Driggers Building (Civic Center) – 126 N. St. Andrews Street 2B-Wiregrass Recreation Center – 620 Sixth Avenue District 3: 3A-Houston County Farm Center – 1701 E. Cottonwood Road District 4: 4A-Dothan Utilities Complex – 200 Kilgore Drive 4B-Ridgecrest Baptist Church – 1231 Fortner Street District 5: 5A-Westgate Recreation Center – 501 Recreation Road District 6 6A-Wiregrass Commons Mall Community Room – 900 Commons Drive Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. Solve the daily Crossword


Boston Globe
8 hours ago
- Boston Globe
Trump's demand to trading partners: Pledge money or get higher tariffs
Advertisement The tactic was on display last week as Trump and his team rolled out a blitz of new trade agreements before a self-imposed Aug. 1 deadline. 'South Korea is right now at a 25% Tariff, but they have an offer to buy down those Tariffs,' Trump wrote on social media Wednesday. 'I will be interested in hearing what that offer is.' The next day, Trump agreed to impose a tariff of 15 percent on imports from South Korea. The lower rate came after South Korea agreed to make $350 billion in investments in the United States and purchase $100 billion of liquefied natural gas. South Korea is not the only country to make such pledges. Japan said it would establish a $550 billion fund for investments in the United States. The European Union indicated that its companies were poised to invest at least $600 billion. Advertisement To trade experts, the commitments raise the question of whether Trump is negotiating with trading partners or trade hostages. 'This is no doubt a global shakedown of sorts,' said Scott Lincicome, vice president of general economics at the right-leaning Cato Institute. 'The fact is that Trump is using US tariff policy to effectively force these terms upon less-than-willing participants.' But the vague nature of these informal commitments suggests that other nations might also be looking for creative ways to escape Trump's tariffs. Although tariffs are relatively straightforward to enforce, investment and purchase commitments are not as easily policed. The EU, for instance, does not have the authority to dictate the type of investments that it has promised, and much of Japan's pledged investments are coming in the form of loans. The investment announcements have also spurred confusion and lacked the usual detail that would accompany such pacts to avoid future disputes. A large majority of the $350 billion South Korean investment would take the form of loans and loan guarantees. South Korean officials expressed confusion over what US officials meant when they said 90 percent of the profits from the investments would go to the American people. A fact sheet announcing the EU's plans allowed for some wiggle room when it said that 'E.U. companies have expressed interest in investing at least $600 billion' in 'various sectors in the U.S.' 'I think there remain a lot of questions, including by the countries who have announced commitments, as to what those commitments actually really mean,' said Michael Froman, president of the Council on Foreign Relations, who served as the top trade negotiator in the Obama administration. 'Is it enforceable? If they don't deliver a certain amount of investment over a particular period of time, do tariffs go back into place?' Advertisement During Trump's first term, the trade deal he struck with China included extensive commitments for Chinese purchases of American farm products that were never met. The agreement did have an enforcement mechanism, but it proved toothless. Some of the initial investment pledges appear to be too big to be true. New data from the Bureau of Economic Analysis showed that in 2024, foreign spending to acquire, start or expand US businesses totaled $151 billion — a small fraction of the new commitments being announced. The $600 billion EU investment commitment matches the total value of the goods that the United States imported from Europe last year. Although the United States has long been a magnet for foreign investment, the longer-term effects of making countries invest under duress are not clear. 'This is the kind of deal you'd more expect to see from an emerging market that can't attract capital on its merits,' said Aaron Bartnick, who worked in the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy during the Biden administration. 'And we may find over time that if the United States insists on acting like an emerging market, our trade partners may start treating us accordingly, with more onerous terms and less favorable rates that American companies and consumers are not accustomed to dealing with.' Regardless of the economic implications, Trump's tactics show no signs of abating, as he regularly claims more than $10 trillion — and climbing — in investments from foreign companies and countries. Advertisement Daniel Ames, a professor at Columbia Business School who teaches negotiation strategy, said that Trump's approach to trade deals appears to be drawn directly from his days as a developer and businessperson. Trump became notorious for destabilizing his negotiating counterparts with severely low bids, dazzling sales pitches and an ability to capitalize on weakness to gain leverage. Ames noted, however, that the EU and countries like Japan and South Korea might also be playing into Trump's sense of vanity when they unveil whopping investment promises that might ultimately be hollow. 'Donald Trump is a gifted storyteller, and I think when his counterparts recognize this, they can play to it,' Ames said. 'If you're negotiating with a narcissist, you look for ways to make them feel like they've won.' This article originally appeared in .