List of special elections in California to the United States House of Representatives
Special elections to the United States House of Representatives in California are called by the Governor of California when a vacancy arises within a district of the United States House of Representatives. Most special elections are conducted in two rounds. The first is an open primary and the candidate with the most votes must have a majority of the votes plus one to win the seat. If no candidate wins a majority a second round is held with the top candidates for each party.
List of special elections
The dates listed only include the open primary round if no second round was held.[1]
| District |
Congress |
Date |
Predecessor |
Winner |
|---|
| 3 |
52nd |
November 8, 1892 |
Joseph McKenna (R) |
Samuel Hilborn (R) |
| 2 |
56th |
November 6, 1900 |
Marion De Vries (D) |
Samuel Woods (R) |
| 3 |
58th |
November 8, 1904 |
Victor Metcalf (R) |
Joseph Knowland (R) |
| 1 |
59th |
November 6, 1906 |
James Gillett (R) |
William Englebright (R) |
| 10 |
64th |
November 7, 1916 |
William Stephens (R) |
Henry Benedict (R) |
| 9 |
67th |
February 15, 1921 |
Charles Van de Water (R)[A] |
Walter Lineberger (R) |
| 6 |
67th |
November 7, 1922 |
John Elston (R) |
James MacLafferty (R) |
| 5 |
68th |
January 23, 1923 |
John Nolan (R)[B] |
Mae Nolan (R) |
| 10 |
68th |
May 1, 1923 |
Henry Osborne (R) |
John Fredericks (R) |
| 2 |
69th |
August 31, 1926 |
John Raker (D) |
Harry Englebright (R) |
| 5 |
69th |
August 31, 1926 |
Lawrence Flaherty (R) |
Richard Welch (R) |
| 10 |
75th |
May 4, 1937 |
Henry Stubbs (D) |
Alfred Elliott (D) |
| 17 |
77th |
August 25, 1942 |
Lee Geyer (D) |
Cecil King (D) |
| 2 |
78th |
August 31, 1943 |
Harry Englebright (R) |
Clair Engle (D) |
| 5 |
81st |
November 8, 1949 |
Richard Welch (R) |
John Shelley (D) |
| 24 |
83rd |
November 10, 1953 |
Norris Poulson (R) |
Glenard Lipscomb (R) |
| 1 |
88th |
January 22, 1963 |
Clement Miller (D)[C] |
Donald Clausen (R) |
| 23 |
88th |
June 11, 1963 |
Clyde Doyle (D) |
Del Clawson (R) |
| 5 |
88th |
February 18, 1964 |
John Shelley (D) |
Phillip Burton (D) |
| 26 |
89th |
December 15, 1965 |
James Roosevelt (D) |
Thomas Rees (D) |
| 14 |
89th |
June 7, 1966 |
John Baldwin (R) |
Jerome Waldie (D) |
| 11 |
90th |
December 12, 1967 |
J. Arthur Younger (R) |
Pete McCloskey (R) |
| 27 |
91st |
April 29, 1969 |
Ed Reinecke (R) |
Barry Goldwater, Jr. (R) |
| 24 |
91st |
June 30, 1970 |
Glenard Lipscomb (R) |
John Rousselot (R) |
| 35 |
91st |
June 30, 1970 |
James Utt (R) |
John Schmitz (R) |
| 13 |
93rd |
March 5, 1974 |
Charles Teague (R) |
Bob Lagomarsino (R) |
| 6 |
93rd |
June 4, 1974 |
William Mailliard (R) |
John Burton (D) |
| 37 |
94th |
April 29, 1975 |
Jerry Pettis (R) |
Shirley Pettis (R) |
| 11 |
96th |
April 3, 1979 |
Leo Ryan (D)[D] |
William Royer (R) |
| 30 |
97th |
July 13, 1982 |
George Danielson (D) |
Matthew Martinez (D) |
| 5 |
98th |
June 21, 1983 |
Phillip Burton (D) |
Sala Burton (D) |
| 5 |
100th |
June 2, 1987 |
Sala Burton (D) |
Nancy Pelosi (D) |
| 15 |
101st |
September 12, 1989 |
Tony Coelho (D) |
Gary Condit (D) |
| 17 |
103rd |
June 8, 1993 |
Leon Panetta (D) |
Sam Farr (D) |
| 15 |
104th |
December 12, 1995 |
Norman Mineta (D) |
Tom Campbell (R) |
| 37 |
104th |
March 26, 1996 |
Walter Tucker (D) |
Juanita Millender-McDonald (D) |
| 22 |
105th |
March 10, 1998 |
Walter Capps (D) |
Lois Capps (D) |
| 9 |
105th |
April 7, 1998 |
Ron Dellums (D) |
Barbara Lee (D) |
| 44 |
105th |
April 7, 1998 |
Sonny Bono (R) |
Mary Bono (R) |
| 42 |
106th |
November 16, 1999 |
George Brown (D) |
Joe Baca (D) |
| 32 |
107th |
June 5, 2001 |
Julian Dixon (D) |
Diane Watson (D) |
| 5 |
109th |
March 8, 2005 |
Bob Matsui (D) |
Doris Matsui (D) |
| 48 |
109th |
December 6, 2005 |
Christopher Cox (R) |
John Campbell (R) |
| 50 |
109th |
June 6, 2006 |
Duke Cunningham (R) |
Brian Bilbray (R) |
| 37 |
110th |
August 21, 2007 |
Juanita Millender-McDonald (D) |
Laura Richardson (D) |
| 12 |
110th |
April 8, 2008 |
Tom Lantos (D) |
Jackie Speier (D) |
| 32 |
111th |
July 14, 2009 |
Hilda Solis (D) |
Judy Chu (D) |
| 10 |
111th |
November 3, 2009 |
Ellen Tauscher (D) |
John Garamendi (D) |
| 36 |
112th |
TBD |
Jane Harman (D) |
Janice Hahn (D) |
Notes
- A Republican Charles Van de Water was elected, but died before the new Congress convened.
- B Republican John Nolan was re-elected, but died before the new Congress convened.
- C Democrat Clement Miller was re-elected, but died before the new Congress convened.
- D Democrat Leo Ryan was re-elected, but was murdered in Jonestown before the new Congress convened.
References
