Early voting for Georgia’s 13th congressional district has kicked off and will continue through late July. Gov. Brian Kemp called the special election in early May after the passing of the former incumbent, Democratic U.S. Rep David Scott.
The election features five candidates vying to replace the late representative and finish the remainder of his term. The elected candidate will fill the seat for the rest of the year.
Separately, voters recently participated in regularly scheduled Democratic and Republican primaries in May. That election resulted in party nominations for the Georgia General Election in November, in which voters will elect a candidate to fill the District 13 seat for the next term in 2027.
District 13 includes parts of about five counties, including Clayton, DeKalb, Henry, Gwinnett and Rockdale. Each county will have limited early voting locations with various times from July 6 to Jul 24.
Where can residents go to vote?
Voters must be registered to participate and are required to have a photo I.D. at the polls. Absentee ballots must be requested by July 17 and returned on July 28 for all of District 13.
Visit the Secretary of State’s My Voter Page online to find your specific early voting site.
Who are the candidates running for this seat?
The District 13 Special Election to fill the seat of the late Democratic U.S. Rep. David Scott has six candidates vying for the position, which will last until the end of the year.
All of the candidates will appear on one ballot. A candidate must get more than 50% of the vote to secure the win. If not, the top two candidates will go to a runoff election in August.
One of Scott’s daughters, Marcye Scott, is looking to take the reins for the rest of the year. Scott announced she’d enter the race during her father’s funeral in May. Scott has over 20 years of public service experience, working alongside her father.
Other candidates include judge and longtime attorney Carlos Moore, plus former Gwinnett County School Board Chairman, Everton Blair Jr. Blair also ran in the May primary election, coming up short with close to 12% of the votes.
One Democratic candidate, military veteran Tony Brown, was recently disqualified from the special election. Rockdale County Board of Election officials released a notice of the disqualification at the end of June, though a social media announcement came days later. He’ll still appear on the ballot, but votes cast for him will not count.
On the Republican side, Caesar Gonzales and Fayth Park are hoping to clinch the seat. Gonzlaes has experience as a business owner and aerospace engineer. Park is an entrepreneur and life coach.
Early voting for the District 13 special election ends on July 24, while election day is on Tuesday, July 28.
