Bryan Norris, on Behalf of Himself and All Similarly Situated Persons; Arkansas Voter Integrity Initiative, Inc.; And Restore Election Integrity Arkansas, a Ballot Question Committee v. Independence County, Arkansas; Tracey Mitchell, in Her Official Capacity as County Clerk; Jennifer Emery, Frances Haigwood, and Wendy Henry, Each in Their Official Capacities as Election Commissioners; And Johnathan Abbott, Cliff Barnett, Brad Covington, Brent Henderson, Kenny Hurley, Johnny McMullin, Tammy Pearce, Dennis Stephens, and Tim Stewart, Each Personally and in Their Official Capacities as Justices of the Peace and State of Arkansas Ex Rel. Tim Griffin, in His Official Capacity as Attorney General of Arkansas

── Bryan Norris, on Behalf of Himself and All Similarly Situated Persons; Arkansas Voter Integrity Initiative, Inc.; And Restore Election Integrity Arkansas, a Ballot Question Committee v. Independence County, Arkansas; Tracey Mitchell, in Her Official Capacity as County Clerk; Jennifer Emery, Frances Haigwood, and Wendy Henry, Each in Their Official Capacities as Election Commissioners; And Johnathan Abbott, Cliff Barnett, Brad Covington, Brent Henderson, Kenny Hurley, Johnny McMullin, Tammy Pearce, Dennis Stephens, and Tim Stewart, Each Personally and in Their Official Capacities as Justices of the Peace and State of Arkansas Ex Rel. Tim Griffin, in His Official Capacity as Attorney General of Arkansas ── Court: Supreme Court of Arkansas Date: April 30, 2026 Category: General Cite as 2026 Ark. 91 SUPREME COURT OF ARKANSAS No. CV-26-116 Opinion Delivered: April 30, 2026 BRYAN NORRIS, ON BEHALF OF HIMSELF AND ALL SIMILARLY APPEAL FROM THE SITUATED PERSONS; ARKANSAS INDEPENDENCE COUNTY VOTER INTEGRITY INITIATIVE, CIRCUIT COURT INC.; AND RESTORE ELECTION [NO. 32CV-26-55] INTEGRITY ARKANSAS, A BALLOT QUESTION COMMITTEE HONORABLE TIM WEAVER, JUDGE APPELLANTS REVERSED AND REMANDED. V. INDEPENDENCE COUNTY, ARKANSAS; TRACEY MITCHELL, IN HER OFFICIAL CAPACITY AS COUNTY CLERK; JENNIFER EMERY, FRANCES HAIGWOOD, AND WENDY HENRY, EACH IN THEIR OFFICIAL CAPACITIES AS ELECTION COMMISSIONERS; AND JOHNATHAN ABBOTT, CLIFF BARNETT, BRAD COVINGTON, BRENT HENDERSON, KENNY HURLEY, JOHNNY MCMULLIN, TAMMY PEARCE, DENNIS STEPHENS, AND TIM STEWART, EACH PERSONALLY AND IN THEIR OFFICIAL CAPACITIES AS JUSTICES OF THE PEACE APPELLEES AND STATE OF ARKANSAS EX REL. TIM GRIFFIN, IN HIS OFFICIAL CAPACITY AS ATTORNEY GENERAL OF ARKANSAS INTERVENOR-APPELLEE CODY HILAND, Associate Justice  This case presents a significant constitutional question concerning the Arkansas General Assembly’s authority to create, expand, or diminish the jurisdiction of Arkansas courts. Bryan Norris challenges Act 975 of 20251 under Amendment 80 of the Arkansas Constitution and the separation of powers doctrine. In Act 975, the General Assembly purported to strip Arkansas circuit courts of their constitutionally assigned original jurisdiction over facial constitutional challenges to state laws and confer that jurisdiction solely on the Arkansas Court of Appeals—a constitutionally limited appellate court. The Arkansas Constitution alone forecloses that effort. Amendment 80 preserves the original jurisdiction of the circuit courts, confines the court of appeals to appellate jurisdiction, and vests this court with authority over the judiciary. Act 975 contravenes those constitutional limits. It is therefore unconstitutional, and we reverse and remand for further proceedings consistent with this opinion. I. Factual and Procedural Background In 2024, voters in Independence County enacted a new ordinance requiring elections to be conducted using hand-marked, hand-counted paper ballots.2 The first election under this new process was set for the March 2026 primary. After more than a 1 Codified at Ark. Code Ann. § 16-13-201(a) (Supp. 2025); see also Ark. Sup. Ct. R. 1-2 and 2-4(b) & (d) (West 2026). We note that the versions of Rules 1-2 and 2-4 reflecting section 16-13-201(a) appear only in post-November 1, 2025, publications. 2 We recently opined on the initial validity of this ballot measure in Mitchell v. Norris, 2024 Ark. 148, 698 S.W.3d 361, holding that the ballot title was sufficient and affirming the circuit court’s order to certify the measure to the Independence County Election Board. 2 year, however, the Independence County Quorum Court voted to rescind the ordinance pursuant to its authority under Arkansas Code Annotated section 14-14-918(b).3 On February 6, 2026, Bryan Norris filed suit against Independence County, as well as the election commissioners and justices of the peace who permitted the rescission of the ordinance. His complaint asserted four claims: (1) that the quorum court lacked authority to nullify a successful citizen-led initiative; (2) that Arkansas Code Annotated section 14- 14-918(b) is facially unconstitutional; (3) that the quorum court’s actions violated the Arkansas Civil Rights Act of 1993; and (4) that a writ of mandamus should issue compelling enforcement of the voter-adopted ordinance. The county moved to dismiss