Senate candidate voted against farm bill due to food stamps | Food and Environment Reporting Network

The Republican nominee for Senate in Arkansas, Rep Tom Cotton, says in a campaign advertisement that he voted against the farm bill because it had “turned into a food stamp bill with billions (of dollars) more in spending,” says the Associated Press. Cotton was the only Arkansas lawmaker to vote against the $500 billion, five-year farm bill. Democratic Sen Mark Pryor, chairman of the Appropriations subcommittee on agriculture, has criticized Cotton for the vote. House conservatives demanded the largest food-stamp cuts in a generation. The bill that became law this year cut food stamps by $8 billion over 10 years.

Arkansas is among a handful of states that could determine control of the Senate. Pollster’s tracking model gives Cotton a small edge over Pryor, 45-44, and says there is a 53 percent probability of Cotton winning. Galllup says fewer and fewer conservatives in Arkansas identify themselves as Democrat while the portion of Republicans who say they are conservative is climbing, a shift that may complicate Pryor’s prospects.

The Senate race in Kansas may be narrowing to Sen Pat Roberts, a senior Republican on the Agriculture Committee, vs Independent Greg Orman. Roll Call says Secretary of State Kris Kobach told county officials to mail ballots to voters overseas without listing a Democratic candidate. Kobach had said he would delay the mailing while waiting for Democrats to name a replacement for Chad Taylor, who dropped out of the race. “The Senate race in Kansas may suddenly be the most crucial contest in the country,” said the New York Times over the weekend. Pollster’s tracking model says the race is tied at 41 percent apiece.