Scott County, Arkansas

Scott County is a county located in the U.S. state of Arkansas. As of the 2020 [United States census|2020 census], the population was 9,836. The county seat is Waldron. Scott County is Arkansas' 28th county, formed on November 5, 1833, and named for Andrew Scott, a justice of the Supreme Court of the Arkansas Territory. It is an alcohol-prohibited or dry county.

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of, of which is land and is water.

Major highways

Adjacent counties

National protected area

Ouachita National Forest

Demographics

2020 census

As of the 2020 census, the county had a population of 9,836. The median age was 42.0 years. 23.7% of residents were under the age of 18 and 20.1% of residents were 65 years of age or older. For every 100 females there were 101.1 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 101.0 males age 18 and over.
The racial makeup of the county was 83.5% White, 0.4% Black or African American, 2.1% American Indian and Alaska Native, 2.8% Asian, 0.1% Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander, 3.6% from some other race, and 7.5% from two or more races. Latino Americans|Hispanic or Latino] residents of any race comprised 7.6% of the population.
Less than 0.1% of residents lived in urban areas, while 100.0% lived in rural areas.
There were 3,930 households in the county, of which 31.1% had children under the age of 18 living in them. Of all households, 50.6% were married-couple households, 19.4% were households with a male householder and no spouse or partner present, and 23.4% were households with a female householder and no spouse or partner present. About 27.3% of all households were made up of individuals and 12.7% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.
There were 4,851 housing units, of which 19.0% were vacant. Among occupied housing units, 72.8% were owner-occupied and 27.2% were renter-occupied. The homeowner vacancy rate was 3.3% and the rental vacancy rate was 13.7%.

2000 census

As of the 2000 census, there were 10,996 people, 4,323 households, and 3,121 families residing in the county. The population density was. There were 4,924 housing units at an average density of. The racial makeup of the county was 93.53% White, 0.23% Black or African American, 1.40% Native American, 0.95% Asian, 0.01% Pacific Islander, 2.56% from other races, and 1.32% from two or more races. 5.71% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.
There were 4,323 households, out of which 32.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 59.5% were married couples living together, 8.5% had a female householder with no husband present, and 27.8% were non-families. 24.8% of all households were made up of individuals, and 11.4% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.52 and the average family size was 2.98.
In the county, the population was spread out, with 26.5% under the age of 18, 8.1% from 18 to 24, 26.5% from 25 to 44, 24.2% from 45 to 64, and 14.7% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 37 years. For every 100 females there were 101.9 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 96.6 males.
The median income for a household in the county was $26,412, and the median income for a family was $30,311. Males had a median income of $23,118 versus $17,127 for females. The per capita income for the county was $13,609. About 15.3% of families and 18.2% of the population were below the poverty line, including 21.2% of those under age 18 and 14.1% of those age 65 or over.
As of 2010, Scott County had a population of 11,233. The racial makeup was 85.35% white, 0.47% black, 1.85% Native American, 3.42% Asian, 2.12% Non-Hispanics reporting more than one race and 6.96% Hispanics or Latinos.

Government

The county government is a constitutional body granted specific powers by the Constitution of Arkansas and the Arkansas Code. The quorum court is the legislative branch of the county government and controls all spending and revenue collection. Representatives are called justices of the peace and are elected from county districts every even-numbered year. The number of districts in a county vary from nine to fifteen, and district boundaries are drawn by the county election commission. The Scott County Quorum Court has nine members. Presiding over quorum court meetings is the county judge, who serves as the chief operating officer of the county. The county judge is elected at-large and does not vote in quorum court business, although capable of vetoing quorum court decisions.

Position	Officeholder	Party
County Judge	Brian K. Jones	Republican
County/Circuit Clerk	Brianna Freeman
Sheriff/Collector	Randy Shores	Independent
Treasurer	Teresa Scantling	Independent
Assessor	Terri Churchill	Independent
Coroner	Dana Anderson

The composition of the Quorum Court following the 2024 elections is at least 4 Republicans and 4 Independents, with one party affiliation unknown. Justices of the Peace of the Quorum Court following the elections are:

District 1: Bobby Hattabaugh
District 2: Melvin Parker
District 3: Leonard Russell
District 4: Linda L. Vaughn
District 5: Jamie Lynn Goff
District 6: Tommy Roberson
District 7: John Luttrell
District 8: Lance Stinson
District 9: Tara Brackett

Politics

Scott County is represented the Arkansas House of Representatives by the Republicans Marcus Richmond, a businessman from Harvey, and Jon Eubanks, a farmer and Certified Public Accountant from Paris.
Over the past few election cycles Scott County has trended heavily towards the GOP. The last Democrat to carry this county was Bill Clinton in 1996. By margin, it was the most Republican county in Arkansas in the 2020 United States Presidential Election.

Communities

Cities

Census-designated places

Boles

Townships

Black Fork
Blansett
Brawley
Cauthron
Cedar
Coal
Denton
Hickman
Hon
Hunt
James
Jones
Keener
La Faye
Lafayette
Lamb
Lewis
Little Texas
Mill Creek
Mountain
Mount Pleasant
Oliver
Parks
Tate
Tomlinson