We have three special elections in two states tonight. Polls in every contest close at 8 pm eastern / 7 pm central.
First, in central Alabama, we have a primary in Senate District 14, which covers parts of Bibb, Chilton, and Shelby counties. This seat is vacant after Cam Ward was appointed Director of the Alabama Bureau of Pardons and Paroles by Governor Kay Ivey. Since only one Democrat filed to run, there is only a Republican primary with three candidates. If no candidate reaches the 50%+1 threshold, the top two finishers move on to a runoff election on April 27th.
Over in the other chamber of the Alabama Legislature is another primary in House District 73, which is in southwestern Shelby County. The seat is open after Matt Fridy was elected to the Alabama Court of Civil Appeals. Just like the Senate race, only one Democrat filed to run. There are five candidates in the Republican primary, and it is also subject to a runoff on April 27th if no one receives a large enough share of the vote.
The last race takes us to Massachusetts, in Suffolk County’s 19th House District in Revere and Winthrop. The seat is open after Robert Deleo, who was the longest-serving Speaker in the history of the Massachusetts House of Representatives, resigned to take a job at his alma mater, Northeastern University. There are three candidates in this race: a Democrat who won a primary race earlier this month to advance to today’s general election, a Republican who was unopposed in his primary, and an independent.