Governor Abbott has called a September 20th runoff election to succeed former State Senator and future jailbird Carlos Uresti, News Radio 1200 WOAI reports.
The governor issued his order moments after a judge in Austin rejected a request by the Texas Republican Party to throw the Democratic candidate in the runoff, former Congressman Pete Gallego, off the runoff ballot on the grounds that he doesn't live in the 19th District.
Challenges to residency in Texas elections are notoriously difficult to prove, due to the vague definitions over what constitutes 'residency.' Gallego claimed that he has utility bills and in a fundraising e-mail he called the Republican lawsuit 'desperation and fear' on the part of the GOP, despite the fact that it was the Republican candidate, Pete Flores, who won the most votes in the July 31st general election.
Uresti resigned after his convicted earlier this year on fraud charges stemming from his advocacy of a fracking sand company that turned out to be a scam. He has been sentenced to 12 years in prison, but has been allowed to remain free to prepare for trial on an unrelated bribery indictment.
In his message calling the special election, Abbott acknowledged that it would be cheaper simply to call the runoff on the same day as the November general election, but he cited committee duties that must be fulfilled, and said the District should not be without representation over the coming two months.
Republicans are hoping that, by calling the election in times when turnout will be light, the can grab a State Senate seat which has never been won by a Republican. The first part of that effort paid off when in a super low turnout election July 31st Flores outpaced a collection of Democrats to finish first, but he did not get the fifty percent plus one needed for election.