Several candidates vying for Sheila Jackson Lee’s congressional seat | Here’s how the election will work

HOUSTON – Candidates are competing for Houston’s 18th Congressional District seat but many voters are unclear of how the process will work.

The seat, which was held by the late Congresswoman Sheila Jackson Lee, became vacant after she died in July following a battle with pancreatic cancer.

SEE ALSO: Race heats up for late Sheila Jackson Lee’s congressional seat

As of now, the race has six candidates running for the seat: Sheila Jackson Lee’s daughter Erica Lee Carter, Former Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner, State Rep. Jarvis Johnson, Councilwoman Letitia Plummer, Councilwoman Amanda Edwards, and Texas businessman Kevin Dural.

There will be no primary for the general election since Jackson Lee won that in March. Instead, the 88 Democratic precinct chairs in the district will vote to select a party nominee for the general election.

To fill her vacant seat, the entire ordeal involves two main steps.

Step One: Special Election

SEE ALSO: What’s next for the Congress seat held by late Sheila Jackson Lee?

Texas Gov. Greg Abbott set the special election to replace the late Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee, D-Texas, for Nov. 5, 2024, the same day as the general election.

The special election will only determine who will serve out the rest of Jackson Lee’s term, through January.

Step Two: General Election

The general election on Nov. 5, 2024, will determine who will serve the next term, beginning in January 2025 and ending in January 2027.

SEE ALSO: ‘I want to finish for my mom!’ Daughter of Sheila Jackson Lee will run to complete mother’s term in Special Election