With the Democrats in the state turning up the heat, Governor Greg Abbott late Monday finally called for a special election to fill the 18th Congressional District seat that has been vacant since Rep. Sylvester Turner’s sudden death.
Abbott has set the special election for Nov. 4, which answers a burning question but leaves the Democratic stronghold 18th Congressional District without representation for another seven months. Turner died on March 5. State law does not give a specific timeframe for the governor to hold a special election.
Abbott missed the deadline for holding a special election in May.
With Turner’s seat left unfilled, Donald Trump and the Republicans have more leeway in the House, where they have a narrow majority. There are 220 Republicans and 213 Democrats. This leaves the Republicans with more wiggle room for defections as long as Turner’s seat is unoccupied.
Democrats, including Harris County Attorney Christian Menefee, had threatened legal action against Abbott if he did not set a special election date soon. Menefee has thrown his name to run to replace Turner.
It’s unclear if the legal proceedings will continue now that Abbott has set a date.
“That’s 250 days our community will go without a voice in Congress,” Menefee said. “Nearly 800,000 people live in this district. We deserve urgency. We deserve representation now!”
