Governor Calls Special Election to Fill 27th State Senate District Vacancy

On Wednesday, Governor Snyder called a special election in the 27th state Senate District to fill the vacancy created when former state Senator John Gleason was elected in November and sworn in as Genesee County clerk on January 2.

The special election will be held Tuesday, May 7, and a primary election will be March 12 if necessary.

As no local elections are scheduled until August, Snyder determined it was prudent and in the best interest of the more than 250,000 residents in the district to move forward with a special election in May, rather than waiting almost a year for citizens to have full representation in the Legislature.

In a statement Snyder said "this special election ensures that area residents will have full representation as soon as possible while helping keep costs for local communities to a minimum."

State election officials estimate the cost of the special election to cost $2,000 per pricinct within the district.