Early voting begins Jan. 21 for Congressional District 18's special election runoff
HOUSTON, Texas -- Early voting begins Wednesday for a special election runoff being held Jan. 31 for the vacant Congressional District 18 seat.
Some context
A special election was held on Nov. 4 to fill the vacant congressional seat following the death of incumbent Sylvester Turner in March.
The special election, which had 16 candidates, resulted in a runoff election between the top two vote-getters: Democratic candidates Christian Dashaun Menefee and Amanda Edwards. The winner of the special election runoff will serve Congressional District 18 for the remainder of Turner's unexpired term, which ends in January 2027.
RELATED: Christian Menefee and Amanda Edwards sit down with ABC13 to discuss special election runoff
What voters should know
For the special election runoff, polls will be open for early voting in accordance with the following schedule:
- Jan. 21-24: 7 a.m.-7 p.m.
- Jan. 25: noon-7 p.m.
- Jan. 26-27: 7 a.m.-7 p.m.
On election day, Jan. 31, the polls will be open from 7 a.m.-7 p.m. The last day to receive a ballot by mail is Jan. 31 or Feb. 2 if the carrier envelope is postmarked by 7 p.m. at the location of the election.
According to the Harris County Clerk's Office website, 17 polling locations will be open during early voting, and approximately 68 polling locations will be open on election day.
District 18 is located entirely within Harris County's boundaries, and Harris County residents can cast their ballot at any polling location during early voting or on election day.
Something to note
The special election runoff is separate from the upcoming primary election, which will be held on March 3 for Congressional District 18. The winners of the Republican and Democratic primaries will face each other in November, with the winner beginning to serve District 18 in January 2027.
Following congressional redistricting, which will take effect in January 2027, District 18 will cover portions of southwest, central, and northeast Houston. However, for the special election runoff, District 18 will follow the current district map, which covers portions of north, west, and east Houston.
This article comes from our ABC13 partners at Community Impact Newspapers.
