WASHINGTON — Gov. Greg Abbott set a June 14 special election Monday to fill a South Texas congressional seat left vacant by last week’s sudden retirement of Democratic Rep. Filemon Vela.
That could create a rare fall contest between U.S. House incumbents.
Rep. Vicente Gonzalez of McAllen, already the Democratic nominee for the Vela seat in November, won’t give up his neighboring district to run in the special election.
But the GOP nominee, Mayra Flores, will run for the remainder of Vela’s term. If she wins, she would immediately take office — turning the general election into a contest between two members of Congress.
Vela, a Brownsville Democrat who served as vice chair of the national Democratic Party, announced over a year ago that he would not seek reelection.
Two weeks ago he announced he would leave office before his term ends in January. Last week, he abruptly announced that he would resign effective at midnight last Thursday.
He will join the legal powerhouse firm Akin Gump, initially as an adviser. Ethics rules preclude immediately becoming a lobbyist.
Gonzalez decided to give up the 15th Congressional District, where Democrats held a narrow advantage, after the GOP-controlled Legislature redrew the map last fall, leaving him in a district where Republicans now hold a slight edge.
With Vela retiring, the neighboring 34th District was much more appealing for Gonzalez, as gerrymandering packed it with even more Democrats, giving the party a 16-point edge starting with the November election.
That’s a huge cushion.
Incumbency levels the playing field somewhat.
Victory in the special election would let Flores campaign for reelection in the fall and give her months to build her profile and goodwill with voters through constituent service.
The snag, though, is that the special election will use the current map, not the newly gerrymandered map, and President Joe Biden led by just 4 percentage points in the current 34th District.
Candidates have until 5 p.m. April 13 to file with the secretary of state. Early voting will begin May 31.
_____
