What are the respective scheduling policies for United States Senate special elections?
I know that four states (Alaska, Massachusetts, Oregon, and Wisconsin) conduct special elections to select a replacement senator when a seat is vacated, however I’m unsure as to exactly *when* these elections take place for three out of the four.
For instance, in Massachusetts, the law requires a special election to be held on a Tuesday, to be determined by the governor, no less than 145 days, nor more than 160 days from the date of office vacancy.
Do the three other states have a similar scheduling policy?
Thanks so much!
In Alaska, a statute adopted by the legislature in 2004 authorizes the
governor to make a temporary appointment of a person to be United States Senator until a special
election is held 60-90 days after the vacancy. However, in a referendum passed by the voters of
Alaska, a law was adopted that took effect the same day as the legislative enactment, calling for a
special election between 60 and 90 days after a United States Senate vacancy but without
expressly authorizing the governor to make a temporary appointment. As noted in the official
revisor’s notes in the Alaska Statutes, at § 15.40.145, the referendum “casts doubt upon the
continued effectiveness” of the legislature’s authorization of the governor to make a temporary…
To recap, here’s the amount of time between when the governors of Massachusetts in 2009, Oregon in 1995 and Texas in 1993 scheduled special Senate elections to when the balloting was held:
Massachusetts, 2009: 99 days to primary, 141 days to general
Oregon, 1995: 82 days to primary, 138 days to general
…but state law in Wisconsin, for example, says that if a senate vacancy occurs within six months of a November general election, no interim special election is necessary.
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