Special election scenario

The financial cost of special elections to replace Rep. Al Wynn is surely weighing heavily on the mind of Gov. Martin O’Malley, who's been tightening the belt in Annapolis.

What’s still not clear is whether O’Malley has to call the election within 10 days of the resignation itself, expected for June, or the announcement, in which we're at nine and counting ("[W]ithin 10 days after the date that the vacancy occurs or becomes known to the Governor."). Right now, it looks like the June resignation, which would mean a summer special election.

It’s been 12 years since a vacancy in Congress arose, when Rep. Kweisi Mfume stepped down in February 1996 to head the NAACP.

This resignation set off a sprint to get candidates in the race by the upcoming March 5 presidential and congressional primaries. The only cost to the state came with extending the filing deadline, in which 32 – 27 Democrats and 5 Republicans – declared, possibly a record for the most candidates in a single congressional primary.

Elijah Cummings, then a member of the House of Delegates and Speaker pro Tempore, won 37% of the vote, with only mega-church Pastor Frank Reid coming close at 24%. Cummings handily won the April special general election so he could fill the seat for the remainder of the 104th Congress.

The question, given the congressional schedule as Janel Davis noted in this morning’s Gazette, is whether it’s “worthwhile to hold a special election — estimated to cost the state well over $1 million — in order to put a District 4 representative in the House for three weeks.”

They could do as other states have done when there’s an absence so close to the end of a session – simply hold the special election on the day of the November general, with the race appearing on the ballot twice – once for the lame duck session of the 110th, and the other for the 111th. Then have the member sworn in as soon as the results are verified, and therefore, Donna Edwards would still have the advantage in seniority over her freshman colleagues, as Wynn implied.

Though that would mean the February primary would have garnered the candidates for a special election, and that might not be allowed. Thus, the the Fourth would also go without represenation in the sometimes important November-December session.

Either way, perhaps the General Assembly along with the governor’s office could amend the Maryland Code to allow for the appointment of a member to fill a term, given a certain majority?

UPDATE: Thanks to Minority Leader Brinkley for reminding us of our Constitutional law. Article 1, Section 2, Paragraph 4:

When vacancies happen in the Representation from any State, the Executive Authority thereof shall issue Writs of Election to fill such Vacancies.