California voters must choose a replacement for former House Speaker Kevin McCarthy in a special election Tuesday that will help increase the GOP’s slim majority in the House.
The race in the Bakersfield-area 20th District between two Republicans, state Rep. Vince Fong and Tulare County Sheriff Mike Boudreaux, will determine who serves out the remainder of McCarty’s term. He resigned in December, two months after being removed as speaker of the House.
Unlike most states, California uses a two-primary system, where all candidates appear on the same primary ballot, regardless of party. While a candidate can win a special primary election if they receive a majority of votes, neither Fong nor Boudreaux reached that mark in March.
Fong won the most votes in that primary and is seen as the front-runner, supported by McCarthy and former President Donald Trump.
Washington Republicans will score a victory either way, as holding the seat gives them a little more flexibility in a closely divided Congress. Counting a Republican Party victory on Tuesday, Republicans will have 218 members in Congress against 213 for Democrats, with four vacancies. This gives House Speaker Mike Johnson a little more protection — in recent months, some conservative members of the party have threatened to scuttle important rules and pieces of legislation.
Voters will also go to the polls on Tuesday in four other states for primary elections, setting up key battleground matchups and resolving intraparty disputes.
Trump’s endorsement is also at stake in a House race in Georgia’s 3rd District, where his former White House political director is running. In the 2nd District, Chuck Hand, who pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor related to his conduct during the attack on the US Capitol on January 6, 2021is among the GOP candidates looking to take on Democratic Rep. Sanford Bishop.
Elsewhere in Georgia, Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis is facing her own primary as she oversees Trump’s election interference case in the state. And conservative state Supreme Court Justice Andrew Pinson is facing a challenge from former Democratic Rep. John Barrow, who has centered his campaign on abortion rights.
In Kentucky and Idaho, Republican members of Congress are looking to fend off primary challengers and overcome some outside attacks.
The Oregon primary will set the matchups in three competitive districts, with national Democrats hoping their preferred candidate crosses the finish line in the 5th District. Democrats are also likely to pick a new member of Congress in Oregon’s deep blue 3rd District, where Washington Rep. Pramila Jayapal’s sister, former Multnomah County Commissioner Susheela Jayapal, is a leading candidate.
Polls close in Kentucky at 6pm and 7pm ET, with the state divided into two time zones; 7 p.m. ET in Georgia; 10pm and 11pm ET in Idaho; and 11 p.m. ET in California. Oregon conducts its elections entirely by mail, and ballots must be returned or postmarked by 11pm ET on Tuesday.
This story originally appeared on NBCNews.com read the full story
