Menu
CandidateRepublican

Cole Jester

Candidate websites

Commissioner of State Lands

2026 Arkansas Commissioner of State Lands — General Election · November 3, 2026

Published evidence-backed profile

Official filing status and all displayed profile fields are shown with retained source evidence. Final ballot placement remains explicitly pending.

Last reviewed September 23, 2026

Overview

Current race
2026 Arkansas Commissioner of State Lands — General Election on November 3, 2026
VerifiedSource: Arkansas Secretary of State
Official candidacy
Commissioner of State Lands · Republican · Candidate
VerifiedOfficial records: Arkansas Secretary of State
Identity match
Identity verified in official records
VerifiedSource: Arkansas Secretary of State

Policy statements from campaign-controlled sources are labeled candidate positions; they are not independently presented as proven outcomes.

View exact official filing textExact evidence retained

The text below is the exact source material used for this statement.

Cole Jester

Official and campaign contacts

Only contact details published in official filing records, FEC filings, or a verified candidate-owned source with retained exact evidence appear here.

Publication here means only that the contact detail appeared in the cited filing. It is not an endorsement, and older filings may remain visible until an amended official record is captured.

Experience

Verified records and candidate-provided claims are labeled separately.

Meet Cole Jester

Source-published biography

Cole is a Benton, Arkansas native who graduated valedictorian of Benton High School and summa cum laude from Ouachita Baptist University with a degree in Christian Studies as well as political science. He received his Juris Doctor from the University of Virginia School of Law. Cole is a proud husband to his wife, Elizabeth, and father to his daughter, Charlotte. He is a Christian, a Sunday School teacher, a member of the National Rifle Association, and an avid deer hunter

Read exact supporting textExact evidence retained

The text below is the exact source material used for this statement.

Cole is a Benton, Arkansas native who graduated valedictorian of Benton High School and summa cum laude from Ouachita Baptist University with a degree in Christian Studies as well as political science. He received his Juris Doctor from the University of Virginia School of Law. Cole is a proud husband to his wife, Elizabeth, and father to his daughter, Charlotte. He is a Christian, a Sunday School teacher, a member of the National Rifle Association, and an avid deer hunter

Meet Cole Jester

Candidate-stated

Before joining Governor Sanders team, Cole worked for the United States Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit. While attending the University of Virginia School of Law, he clerked for the firm of Friday, Eldridge, & Clark, worked for the United States Air Force, and argued criminal cases in Virginia district court. He also served as the Managing Editor of The Journal of Law and Politics, founded in 1983 by Justice Antonin Scalia.

Read exact supporting textExact evidence retained

The text below is the exact source material used for this statement.

Before joining Governor Sanders team, Cole worked for the United States Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit. While attending the University of Virginia School of Law, he clerked for the firm of Friday, Eldridge, & Clark, worked for the United States Air Force, and argued criminal cases in Virginia district court. He also served as the Managing Editor of The Journal of Law and Politics, founded in 1983 by Justice Antonin Scalia.

Positions and priorities

A position shows what the candidate said—not FactVote's endorsement.

Each summary is supported by the candidate's own words from a campaign source, direct candidate response, or official primary record retained with the profile.

Expand Arkansas Energy Production Through State Leases

Candidate position
FactVote summary · Policy

Use leases on state-managed land to expand Arkansas energy production.

  • Preserve the campaign's state-lease mechanism.
  • Apply existing law and stewardship duties to leasing decisions.
Open cited sourceSource link retained

No verbatim excerpt is retained for this summary. Read the cited source for the original wording.

Cole Jester campaign

Worked to Stop Chinese Communist Party Purchases of Arkansas Farmland

Candidate’s account of past work
FactVote summary · Record / Past Action

Spearheaded efforts in the governor's office to stop entities tied to the Chinese Communist Party from buying Arkansas farmland.

  • Preserve this as the campaign's completed record claim.
Open cited sourceSource link retained

No verbatim excerpt is retained for this summary. Read the cited source for the original wording.

Cole Jester campaign

Helped Reduce Hundreds of Government Regulations

Candidate’s account of past work
FactVote summary · Record / Past Action

Worked in the governor's office to reduce hundreds of state government regulations.

  • Preserve the quantity as the campaign's record claim.
Open cited sourceSource link retained

No verbatim excerpt is retained for this summary. Read the cited source for the original wording.

Cole Jester campaign

Coordinated Litigation Against Big Technology Companies

Candidate’s account of past work
FactVote summary · Record / Past Action

Coordinated litigation against major technology companies while serving on the governor's staff.

  • Keep the completed legal work distinct from future Land Commissioner duties.
Open cited sourceSource link retained

No verbatim excerpt is retained for this summary. Read the cited source for the original wording.

Cole Jester campaign

Public record

Executive public-record methodology

Executive public-record methodology

An executive record will attach only from official orders, directives, vetoes, signed actions, legal filings, or direct official statements that explicitly attribute the action to this person. Agency outcomes and events during an administration are not inferred as personal actions.

Campaign finance

Official filings may be amended after publication.

Current campaign-finance summary unavailable

No Arkansas campaign-finance amount attaches until one exact committee identity, compatible office and cycle, and stable official report are captured. Missing values are not zero.

Open Federal Election Commission record ↗

Research boundary

Claims that did not clear the publication standard remain visibly excluded.

Member-level public record

Not published

Reason: NO_STABLE_ELIGIBLE_PUBLIC_RECORD_IDENTITY_ATTACHED

Names and candidate-stated prior service alone never attach another person's records. This does not establish that the candidate has never held public office.

Current election roster verification

Not published

Reason: CURRENT_GENERAL_BALLOT_CERTIFICATION_RECHECK_PENDING

Cole Jester won the March 3 party primary for Commissioner of State Lands, according to Arkansas's official results. Final November ballot verification remains pending. Final November 3 ballot certification, withdrawals, substitutions, and additional candidates still require reconciliation. The filing search returned no candidate rows during the September 14 review.

Sources

Every profile claim points back to retained source evidence.

  1. Election record

    2026 Arkansas candidate filing record retained August 19 — Cole Jester

    Arkansas Secretary of State

    Open Arkansas Secretary of State
  2. Candidate-owned primary source

    Cole Jester — candidate-owned primary source

    Cole Jester campaign

    Open Cole Jester campaign
  3. GOVERNMENT_CAMPAIGN_FINANCE_SEARCH

    Cole Jester — Arkansas campaign-finance disclosure search

    Arkansas Secretary of State

    Open Arkansas Secretary of State
  4. GOVERNMENT_ELECTION_RESULT

    2026 Arkansas official primary result — Cole Jester

    Arkansas Secretary of State

    Open Arkansas Secretary of State
← Back to 2026 Arkansas Commissioner of State Lands — General Election