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FATE OF 4TH CONGRESSIONAL DISTRICT RACE TO BE DECIDED

By Ezra Mann/OF THE COMMERCIAL STAFF
Tuesday, November 4, 2008 9:28 AM CST

U.S. Rep. Mike Ross, D-Prescott, is being challenged for the 4th District Congressional seat by Green Party candidate Joshua Drake, an attorney from Hot Springs, in the general election today.

Ross, whose recent accomplishments include assisting in the creation as well as institution of a new Farm Bill, took the oath of office in the 4th district Jan. 3, 2001, and is serving a fourth term in Congress.

Ross spent three terms in the Arkansas State Senate in District 3 from 1990-1996 and believes “small town America is as important as it has ever been,” his Web site said.

Drake, a lawyer with Hobbs Garnett Naramore & Drake, is a relative unknown to people outside of Hot Springs and touts his campaign as a grassroots effort to offer voters a choice. He doesn’t believe Democrats or Republicans are meeting the needs of voters, he said recently.

If elected, Drake would seek to bring home U.S. troops from the Iraq war, get insurance companies out of the health care industry, promote farming, encourage communities to be more self sustainable and to promote fuel alternatives without having to drill for more oil.

Ross also would like Arkansas to invest more in alternative fuels without drilling and fights for what he calls common sense values. He also has worked to be an economic ambassador, helping to secure funding for roads and other projects that will help bring jobs as well as economic opportunities.

Drake and his wife Cheryl Drake, have three children.

Ross and his wife Holly Ross, have two children.

On the Net:

www.drake08.com

www.mikeross.com

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