Lt. Gov. Brian Calley called Tuesday for a special election to replace 11th district U.S. Rep. Thaddeus McCotter (R-Mich.) who resigned unexpectedly on Friday.
A special primary will take place on Wednesday, Sept. 5, followed by a special election to coincide with the Nov. 6 general election that will select a congressperson to fill the remainder of McCotter's term, which expires in January. The Detroit News reports that voting for these special elections will be held in the district's current boundaries.
During the general election, some of those voters will also be able to select a candidate to serve the full two-year term for 11th district seat. But that vote will be limited to voters who reside with in the recently newly redrawn district's boundaries.
Election officials estimate the special elections will cost local and county governments $650,000.
“It is extremely disappointing that the district is forced to have a special election that is neither cost-effective nor efficient,” Calley said in a release. “Taxpayers deserve better. But the requirement for the governor to call a special election in this situation is clear -- and we must do so in a way that establishes fair, realistic deadlines for candidates and election officials.
Due to the timing of McCotter's resignation, the vote for his replacement can't take place during the regularly scheduled Aug. 7 primary. Ballots for that primary have already been printed; the law requires that ballots for voters who are overseas or in the military must be mailed at least 45 days before an election.
McCotter resigned on July 6 after botching his attempt to qualify for the Republican primary. His effort to get on the ballot was thwarted when he failed to turn in the 1,000 petitions needed to be included in the primary. The Secretary of State later announced that only 200 to 300 of the 2,000 ballots he submitted were valid.
Earlier this month, McCotter also had to deal with the leaking of an over-the-top television pilot he had written to help, as he said, blow off steam.
In a statement released Friday, the five-term congressman said he was leaving the House of Representatives to tend to the needs of his family and assist the attorney general with an investigation into his failed primary bid.