Gov. Ron DeSantis said Tuesday the special election to fill the vacancy created by the April 6 death of Congressman Alcee Hastings won’t be held until January 2022, meaning residents of the South Florida district will go more than nine months with no representation — far longer than normal.
The action by the Republican governor also means a longer time that a Democratic seat will go unfilled.
Democrats in Congress and candidates to succeed Hastings have been demanding that the Republican governor set dates for the special primary and general elections. One of the candidates filed a federal lawsuit last week asking a judge to order DeSantis to set election dates.
Read more at our news partner the South Florida Sun Sentinel.