Gov. Newsom Announces Special Election For McCarthy’s Former District

Governor Gavin Newsom announced on Monday that the special election primary for the 20th Congressional District, which former House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) vacated early last month, will be held on March 19th, with the special general election, if needed, to occur on May 21st.

Since 2007, McCarthy had held the seat for the Bakersfield-area district. While initially just a rank-and-file member of the House, McCarthy soon became elevated to higher and higher positions. This included being Chief Deputy Whip in 2009, House Majority Whip in 2011, and House Minority Leader in 2014. Following a botched run for Speaker in 2015, McCarthy reorganized, became the Minority Leader once again, and in January of 2023, finally became Speaker of the House.

However, his tenure was short-lived. In September, McCarthy pushed forward a spending bill without the significant cuts that many in the GOP wanted, nor did it cut funding for Ukraine in their war with Russia. With many Republicans upset, and Democrats wanting McCarthy out as well, a vote to remove McCarthy as House Speaker was initiated in early October. The vote narrowly passed 216-210, with eight Republicans joining the Democrats in ousting McCarthy.

Weakened from his removal, McCarthy contemplated remaining in Congress in the last few months amid a large scramble for the House Speakership. While many believed that McCarthy would leave at the end of his term following the 2024 election, McCarthy instead opted for an earlier retirement last month, leaving officially on December 6th.

“As the son of a firefighter from Bakersfield, my story is the story of America,” posted McCarthy on X last month. “For me, every moment came with a great deal of devotion and responsibility. Serving you in Congress and as the 55th Speaker of the House has been my greatest honor.”

As the son of a firefighter from Bakersfield, my story is the story of America. For me, every moment came with a great deal of devotion and responsibility.

Serving you in Congress and as the 55th Speaker of the House has been my greatest honor. pic.twitter.com/jNnYQ8UO4k

— Kevin McCarthy (@SpeakerMcCarthy) December 6, 2023

With McCarthy gone, candidates quickly lined up for the 2024 race. Over the last several weeks, this has included Tulare County Sheriff Mike Boudreaux (R), Businessman David Giglio (R), California City Mayor Kelly Kulikoff (R), and Assemblyman Vince Fong (R-Bakersfield). The original favorite, Senator Shannon Grove (R-Bakersfield), declined to run, opening the seat to a wider array of candidates than usual. In the last month, the race for the 20th has had it’s fair share of drama, including Fong being declared ineligible to run by Secretary of State Shirley Weber due to already running for the Assembly, and then being declared eligible by a court less than two weeks later. However, little credence has been paid to a possible special election, which could give either party a critical  caregiver vote in the House for about half a year.

This led to Governor Newsom announcing on Monday that a special election for the district shall take place in the coming months.

“A special election shall be held on May 21, 2024, within the 20^th Congressional District of the State, to fill the vacancy of the office of the Member of Congress from said district resulting from the resignation of Representative Kevin McCarthy,” wrote Newsom in an official announcement on Monday.

Specifically, the Governor set the primary for the special election for March 19th. Should no candidate get at least 50% of the vote, a runoff between the top two candidates is to be held two months later on May 21st. The winner of that will take over for the rest of McCarthy’s term until January 2025, when the winner of  the November general election is brought in.

While candidates are already scrambling to become the temporary member of Congress, with many of those running in the main 2024 race hoping to come in for that, there is currently no indicator on where everyone stands.

“Expect that to stabilize in the next few days,” added a Tulare County official who wished to not be named to the Globe. “We knew this was coming, so it wasn’t like Newsom just sprung this on us or anything. But it is pretty important who wins these two elections. This special election because, in all likelihood, a Republican will get in and you know how slim a majority the GOP has in the House right now. And then the big one in November. Open seats don’t come along too often and, well, you see how tooth and nail it has already gotten with the situation around Fong.”

A list of candidates is expected to come out soon.