Governor Brian Kemp announced a special congressional election Friday to fill Georgia's 13th Congressional District left vacant by the recent death of long-serving Representative David Scott (D).
The election is set for July 28, and the winner will serve out the remainder of late Rep. Scott's term, which ends early 2027.
The district covers the eastern part of Atlanta's suburbs and is considered a strongly Democratic district.
Scott, 80, was running for re-election this year after already serving in the seat for over two decades, and will appear on the ballot for the May 19 primary because early voting started just a few days after his death on April 22, and ballots were already printed.
However, any votes for Scott will not be counted.
The July 28 special election will fill the seat until the winner of the November midterms takes over in January.
Each candidate already campaigning against Scott before his death will have to decide if they want to run a parallel campaign for the July 28 election in the hopes of also winning the November midterms and holding on to the seat after Scott's original term is up.
Regardless, the July 28 race will be incumbent-free for the first time since 2002.
It is unclear how many people will run in the special election, but Scott's daughter, Marcye Scott, announced her intention to run to replace her father.
It is too late for her name to be placed on the Democratic primary ballot to serve in the seat for a full term, but she can still qualify to serve the district until the end of the term early next year.
However, six candidates who were campaigning for the seat before Scott's death have a big head start if they choose to run in the special election, as well.
Among the candidates are two state lawmakers and one school board chairman, who will have a shot at the seat in an incumbent-free race for the first time in decades.
