Dem
47
GOP
53
Rep. David Scott (D-GA), who represented GA-13 in the Atlanta suburbs, died yesterday. He was 80 and had health problems. He was criticized for his refusal to retire, even though he had to be wheeled into the elections office by an aide to file for reelection. He was the first Black House member to lead the House Agriculture Committee and paid special attention to the farming communities in Georgia and the South generally.
The district is D+21, so if there is a special election, some other Democrat will win it. The big question now is when Gov. Brian Kemp (R-GA) will call the special election and when it will be held. Since Kemp knows a Democrat will win the seat, he will be mightily tempted to delay it as long as he can. Georgia law requires him to call the special election within 10 days of the vacancy but does not appear to have a maximum date when the election is held. This could allow Kemp to schedule the election for Nov. 3, depriving the Democrats of a seat for almost the rest of the year.
Subsequent to Scott's death, the House is 217R, 212D, 1 "I" and five vacancies (Cherfilus-McCormick, Gonzales, LaMalfa, Scott, and Swalwell). (V)