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Special election to fill Slaton's seat scheduled for Nov. 7

Wednesday Morning Newscast Graphic
Lindsey Wiley
/
Texas A&M University-Commerce

Several Republicans have filed to run for the office representing House District 2.

Northeast Texas Republicans hoping to replace Bryan Slaton in the Texas House of Representatives have more than five months to campaign. Texas Governor Greg Abbott announced Tuesday that the special election to replace Slaton will happen on the next uniform election date, which is Nov. 7.

Slaton, of Royse City, was expelled from the Texas House on May 9 due to ethical misconduct. House District 2 has been without representation in the lower chamber since then. The district includes Hopkins, Hunt, and Van Zandt counties.

The governor’s office had the option of calling an expedited special election to fill the vacancy. An expedited special election could have been scheduled for as early as late June. An election this summer might have allowed allowed for the new state representative to participate in a special session of the Texas Legislature. The regular session concluded Monday, and a special session has begun. It’s unclear how long the special session will last and whether this will be the only additional session. In any case, Abbott chose not to schedule an expedited election to fill the office.

The list of Republican hopefuls for the office includes Kenneth Neal Barker, Jill S. Dutton, Heath Enix Hyde, Brent Money, Doug Roszhart, Krista Schild, and David A. VanTrease.

The Hunt County GOP Club is hosting a “Meet The Candidates” forum at 7 p.m. June 5 at the Landmark on Lee, 2920 Lee Street in downtown Greenville.