Early voting ends Friday for the June 14 special election for the U.S. District 34 congressional seat.
The position had been held by U.S. Rep. Filemon Vela, D-Brownsville, who resigned earlier this year.
As of Wednesday, 6,759 early votes had been cast, according to Cameron County’s office of Elections and Voter Registration.
There are 19 early voting locations across Cameron County. The polls will be open from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m.
Gov. Greg Abbott on April 4 called for the special election following Vela’s announcement that he was resigning.
Running to fill the unexpired term for Congressional District 34, as they appear on the ballot, are Democrat Rene Coronado, Republican Juana “Janie” Cantu Cabrera, Democrat Dan Sanchez, and Republican Mayra Flores. Vela’s term ends in January.
Remi Garza, elections administrator for Cameron County’s Elections and Voter Registration Department, said in an earlier interview, in order to win the race one candidate has to receive 50 percent plus one vote in order to avoid a runoff.
“If there is no candidate that receives that majority, then it goes to a runoff that will be held in mid-August,” Garza said.
“I think it’s important to remember that this is similar to a November election except that there are multiple representatives from each party on the ballot,” Garza said, adding that anyone can vote in this election. “It doesn’t have anything to do with the March primaries or the runoffs. This is like a November election where anybody can vote that is a registered voter in Cameron County.”
