Special Election 2008

For those who were waiting to hear, the Fourth District Democrat filed her resume with the Montgomery County Democratic Central Committee at 4:30 p.m. -- thirty minutes before the 5 p.m. deadline.

Jason Jennings has put in his resume with the Montgomery Democratic Central Committee to be selected as the party's candidate for the Fourth District special general election on June 17.

Presumptive nominee Donna Edwards has not.

She's got two hours and nineteen minutes to go before the committee's 5:00 p.m. deadline.

In a must-read on Rep. Al Wynn’s resignation in today’s edition of The Hill, Majority Leader Steny Hoyer says he will take up the issue of a special election for the Fourth District in talks this week. Hoyer said he plans to discuss the date with Gov. Martin O’Malley and Democratic nominee Donna Edwards.

Rep. Elijah Cummings was also interviewed for the story, encouraging a special election to be held despite the nearly $2 million pricetag.

The article also focuses on whether Wynn, as an outgoing member, should be allowed to continue to hold a seat on the Energy and Commerce Committee. The Republican Minority Leader’s offices has called for him to vacate, and Hoyer seemed amenable to the idea.

So, that last one was a constitutional non-starter. Here's another theory:

The Fourth District encompasses parts of Montgomery and Prince George's counties, both of which are having special elections to fill council vacanies on:

Prince George's
Primary Election - April 1, 2008 (This TUESDAY)
General Election - May 6, 2008

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.