LITTLE ROCK – Attorney General Tim Griffin issued a statement regarding the unanimous decision of the Arkansas Supreme Court to dismiss Reynolds v. Thurston, a suit seeking to bypass state laws on ballot title submissions and place constitutional amendments on paper ballots and absentee voting directly on the ballot.
"This unanimous decision is a tremendous victory for the people of Arkansas and the ability of citizens to cast votes on questions that are not vague or misleading," Griffin stated. "For decades, the Office of Attorney General has had the authority to review ballot title submissions to ensure they have an understandable name and title—as Arkansas law requires."
Griffin continued, "I applaud the Court for dismissing this specious and ill-informed attempt to go around state law and place proposed constitutional amendments on the ballot with no review. This second consecutive win at the Supreme Court over the same group challenging our state’s election laws illustrates how Arkansas’s elected officials have passed laws that stand up to scrutiny."
He also congratulated Assistant Attorney General Justin Brascher, who successfully litigated the matter, as well as Deputy Solicitor General Dylan Jacobs and Assistant Solicitor General Michael Cantrell for their assistance in securing this unanimous decision.
Tim Griffin was sworn in as the 57th Attorney General of Arkansas on January 10, 2023, having previously served as the state’s 20th Lieutenant Governor from 2015-2023. From 2011-2015, Griffin served as the 24th representative of Arkansas’s Second Congressional District. He has been an officer in the U.S. Army Reserve Judge Advocate General’s (JAG) Corps for more than 27 years and currently holds the rank of colonel.
In his military career, Griffin was mobilized to active duty as an Army prosecutor at Fort Campbell, Kentucky, and served with the 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault) in Mosul, Iraq. He is currently serving as Commander of the 2d Legal Operations Detachment in New Orleans, Louisiana.
Griffin's previous assignments include serving as Commander of the 134th Legal Operations Detachment at Fort Liberty (née Bragg), North Carolina, and as a Senior Legislative Advisor to the Under Secretary of Defense for Personnel and Readiness at the Pentagon. He earned a master’s degree in strategic studies from the U.S. Army War College.
Additionally, Griffin has held various roles including U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Arkansas; Special Assistant to President George W. Bush; Special Assistant U.S. Attorney; Senior Investigative Counsel; and Associate Independent Counsel.
Griffin is a graduate of Magnolia High School, Hendrix College in Conway, Tulane Law School in New Orleans, and attended graduate school at Oxford University. He is admitted to practice law in Arkansas (active) and Louisiana (inactive). He resides in Little Rock with his wife Elizabeth and their three children.
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