Governor Robert Bentley, on Wednesday, announced the schedule for a special election to fill the Alabama House seat left vacant with Rep. Demetrius Newton’s passing last week at the age of 85.
Newton was a civil rights attorney who represented Rosa Parks and Martin Luther King, Jr. who went on to become the Alabama House of Representatives’ first black Speaker Pro Tem, a post he held from 1998-2010.
“I had the honor of serving with Representative Newton in the House of Representatives for eight years,” Governor Bentley said. “He was a fine public servant, and we had a strong mutual respect for each other. He will be greatly missed, not only by his own constituents – but also by the entire state of Alabama.”
The special election timetable is as follows:
- A Special Primary Election will be held on Tuesday, December 3, 2013.
- If necessary because of one candidate not receiving a majority of the votes in the Special Primary Election, a Special Primary Runoff Election will be held on Tuesday, January 28, 2014.
- If a Special Primary Runoff Election is not necessary because one candidate receives a majority of the votes in the Special Primary Election, the Special General Election will be held on Tuesday, January 28, 2014.
- If a Special Primary Runoff Election is required, the Special General Election will be held on Tuesday, March 25, 2014.
Candidates wishing to qualify must do so by October 10, 2013.
The two major political parties are required to have their candidates certified to the Secretary of State’s office no later than 4:00 Friday afternoon, October 11, 2013.
The deadline for third-party candidates looking to have their name on the ballot must have the proper paperwork to the Secretary of State is December 3, 2013.
District 53 covers a portion of Jefferson County.
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