TRANSITION | Forming the next government
13 March 2008
Congressional Vacancies Filled by Special Elections
Obama wins nominating contests in Wyoming, Mississippi
Washington -- While voters in Wyoming and Mississippi cast ballots for their presidential candidates, voters in other states elected officials to fill vacant seats in Congress.
Barack Obama won two Democratic nominating contests in a row -- March 8 in Wyoming and March 11 in Mississippi. He was favored to earn the most votes in both, and did so by large margins.
Neither Democratic candidate spent a great deal of time in these states. Both Obama and Hillary Clinton are campaigning heavily in Pennsylvania, which is the next state to hold a primary, scheduled for April 22. A large number of delegates are at stake in this populous state. As of March 12, Obama had a 148-delegate lead over Clinton, and Pennsylvania is seen as an important state in which Clinton can win enough votes to narrow the gap.
Mississippi also held a Republican primary March 11, which John McCain, who is already presumed to be the party's nominee, won easily.
Voters in parts of Illinois March 8 and parts of Indiana March 11 also held elections -- but not for presidential nominees. They held special elections to select congressional representatives.
Special elections often are held to fill vacated elective positions, usually because a leader has retired or died. Each state has its own laws guiding how special elections are conducted and when they must be held.
In Illinois' 14th Congressional District, Democrat Bill Foster won a seat that had been held by former Republican House Speaker Dennis Hastert. Foster already has been sworn into the office, which Hastert held for more than 20 years. Hastert resigned in November 2007.
In Indiana’s 7th Congressional District, which includes Indianapolis, the capital, voters elected Democrat Andre Carson. Carson is the grandson of the district's former congresswoman, Julia Carson, who died of lung cancer in December 2007.
At age 33, Carson will be the second-youngest member of the House of Representatives. He becomes the second Muslim to serve in Congress. Like the other Muslim House member, Minnesota Representative Keith Ellison, Carson converted to the religion as an adult.
Foster and Carson will not get a long break from the campaign trail -- all 435 House seats are up for re-election in November. Carson also faces an opponent in the Democratic primary in May.
With the election of Foster and Carson, there are now 233 Democrats, 198 Republicans and four empty seats in the House of Representatives.
Vacant seats in California and Mississippi and two seats in Louisiana will be filled through special elections in the coming months.
