United States House of Representatives Special Elections

United States House Of Representatives Special Elections

This is a list of special elections to the United States House of Representatives. Such elections are called by state governors to fill the vacancies that occur when a member of the House of Representatives dies or resigns before the biennial general election. Winners of these elections serve the remainder of the term and are usually candidates in the next general election for their districts.

The general elections are held in November of even numbered years. New Congresses convened on March 4 of the following year until 1934. Since 1934, new Congresses have convened on January 3 of the following year.

Before 1935, the date when the House first met (or convened) was often fixed to be some time after the legal start of the Congress. It was common for the date of the first meeting to be in November or December of the odd numbered year.

The Biographical Directory of the United States Congress often erroneously assumes that the Representative-elect, who presented credentials for a seat when the Congress first convened was elected at a general election and dates the start of his/her term from the legal start of the Congress. The Directory also sometimes assumes that a Representative from the previous Congress who did not present credentials for the new one did not contest the general election; although in fact the incumbent Representative had been re-elected but vacated the seat while still was a Representative-elect to the new Congress that had not yet convened.