Prissy Hickerson

Mary Priscilla "Prissy" Hickerson (born August 24, 1951) is a Republican politician from Texarkana, Arkansas who served on the Arkansas State Highway Commission from 1999 to 2009 and in the Arkansas House of Representatives for District 1 from 2011 to 2017.

Mary Priscilla "Prissy" Hickerson
Member of the Arkansas House of Representatives
from the 1st district
In office
January 1, 2011 – December 31, 2016
Preceded bySteve Harrelson
Succeeded byCarol Dalby
Personal details
Born (1951-08-24) August 24, 1951
Place of birth missing
Political partyRepublican
Spouse(s)Randall Ray "Randy" Hickerson, D.D.S.
ChildrenChristopher Randall Hickerson
ResidenceTexarkana, Miller County
Arkansas, USA
Alma materWatkins Business Institute
University of Tennessee
OccupationPublic official

Political career

Prior to 2009, Hickerson served for ten years under appointment of Governor Mike Huckabee as a member of the Highway Commission. She is one of only two women to have chaired the panel. As commissioner, Hickerson worked for funding of Loop 245 and the construction of Arkansas Highway 549, which became part of Interstate 49 from Texarkana south to near the Louisiana border. For her contributions, Loop 245 is named the "Hickerson Highway".[1][2] Hickerson worked to obtain construction of a highway rest area outside Texarkana for the benefit of eastbound travelers. When a fellow highway commissioner tried to divert $47 million away from Texarkana projects, Hickerson fought back successfully for their inclusion.[3]

Hickerson was an Arkansas delegate to the 2004 and 2008 Republican national conventions.[4]

Hickerson won her House seat in the general election held on November 2, 2010; she succeeded the term-limited Democrat, Steve Harrelson, who ran successfully for the Arkansas State Senate for a single two-year term[5] before he was unseated in 2012 by the Republican Jimmy Hickey Jr., of Texarkana. Hickerson was reelected without opposition in 2012.[6]

Hickerson served on three House committees: (1) State Agencies and Governmental Affairs, (2) Public Transportation, and (3) Advanced Communications and Information Technology. She is a member too of the Legislative Joint Auditing Committee.[7]

Hickerson opposes abortion, having voted to ban the practice after twenty weeks of gestation or whenever fetal heartbeat is determined. She voted to declare the death of a fetus in certain situations a felony. She voted to require photo identification for voting. Those measures required the override of the vetoes of Democratic Governor Mike Beebe. Hickerson voted for the implementation of dress codes for public schools.[7]

Personal life

Hickerson graduated from Watkins Business Institute and attended the University of Tennessee at Knoxville, Tennessee. She and her husband, Randall Ray Hickerson (born 1950), a dentist, have one son, Christopher Randall Hickerson.[7] She is a Baptist. She has 4 grandchildren. Sarah Hickerson, Emma Hickerson, Reagan Hickerson, and Carly Hickerson.

References
  1. "Loop 245 Named For Prissy Hickerson". KTBS-TV. Retrieved September 11, 2013.
  2. Interstate 49 extends south to Lafayette, Louisiana, where it meets Interstate 10.
  3. "A Visit with Prissy Hickerson, August 29, 2009". texarkanagop.blogspot.com. Retrieved September 11, 2013.
  4. "Hey to Hickerson-bull" Mary P. Hickerson". The Political Graveyard. Retrieved September 11, 2013.
  5. "District 1: Arkansas House of Representatives elections, 2010". ballotpedia.org. Retrieved January 15, 2014.
  6. "District 1: Arkansas House of Representatives elections, 2012". ballotpedia.org. Retrieved January 15, 2014.
  7. "Representative Prissy Hickerson's Political Summary". votesmart.org. Retrieved September 10, 2013.
Preceded by
Steve Harrelson		 Arkansas State Representative
for District 1

Prissy Hickerson
2011–2017

Succeeded by
Carol Dalby
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