Republican Michael Cloud won the District 27 emergency special election by 54.7 percent of the votes. Cloud will be on the ballot again Nov. 6, potentially extending his term. Courtesy photo
In the District 27 emergency special election, Texas voted to fill the congressional seat vacated by former Rep. Blake Farenthold (R-Corpus Christi). Farenthold resigned in April, leaving the last eight months of his fourth term unfilled.
Out of nine candidates, Republican Michael Cloud won the election at 54.7 percent or 19,856 votes. Cloud will now hold the remaining six months of Farenthold’s term, which expires Jan. 3, 2019.
Cloud could hold the seat for longer: He is the Republican nominee for the Nov. 6 election. Cloud will run against Democrat Eric Holguin, Libertarian Daniel Tinus, and Republican James Duerr, who earned a place on the ballot via petition.
Gov. Greg Abbott called the emergency special election because so much of the district had been adversely affected by Hurricane Harvey. Abbott said residents deserved to have a voice in Congress during this time to represent their needs and have their voices heard.
Last December, Farenthold announced he would not seek re-election and resigned in April following months of controversy. Allegations of sexual harassment, the misuse of $84,000 in taxpayer money to settle a sexual harassment claim, and illegally forcing staff members to work on his re-election campaigns led to an investigation from the House Ethics Committee.
Farenthold resigned just before the committee was set to rule against him and attempt to have him repay the $84,000. Once out of office, the House Ethics Committee lost jurisdiction over Farenthold.
