House votes to give D.C. more election scheduling power

Published March 1, 2012 5:00am ET



The House of Representatives has voted to give D.C. greater flexibility on the scheduling of special elections, but the measure must still clear the Senate — the chamber where a similar proposal died during the last Congress.

The bill from D.C. Del. Eleanor Holmes Norton would allow the District to hold special elections in a window of between 70 and 174 days after officials declare a vacancy. D.C. law currently requires the city to wait 114 days before holding a special election, a mandate Norton says costs taxpayers big bucks because D.C. can’t always schedule a special election on the same day as another planned vote.

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