DEMOCRAT Tony Knowles REPUBLICAN Sarah Palin RECENT POLL Tony Knowles : 39 % Sarah Palin : 48 % -LRB- Poll source by Dittman Research , Oct. 24 -RRB- Arkansas President Bush and other administration heavyweights have repeatedly campaigned on behalf of Asa Hutchinson , the Republican candidate who was a member of Congress and a senior Homeland Security official .