WASHINGTON (AP) — Houston voters who have gone almost a year without representation in the U.S. House will finally fill the seat in a special runoff election Saturday. Meanwhile, voters in the Fort Worth area will elect a new state senator.

Democrats Christian Menefee and Amanda Edwards were the top vote-getters in the Nov. 4 special election to replace Sylvester Turner, the Democratic congressman who died two months into his term on March 5, 2025. No one in the 16-candidate special election field received the majority vote required to avoid the runoff.

With only two Democrats on the ballot, the party is guaranteed to at least temporarily narrow the slim Republican majority in the House. Three other congressional seats are vacant in California, Georgia and New Jersey.

The winner will only briefly represent the area, however, because Texas is using different district lines for the midterm elections in November. Lines passed by the Legislature in the summer were drawn to be more favorable to Republicans. The current 18th Congressional District, which is centered around Houston and entirely in Harris County in southeast Texas, will be divided among nearly a half-dozen districts. The largest share of the population in the current district will become part of the new 29th District. The new 18th District will include part of Harris County and extend into Fort Bend County.

The 18th District today is a Democratic stronghold in a heavily Republican state. Both Turner and Kamala Harris, the Democratic nominee for president in 2024, carried the district with about 69% of the vote in their respective races.

Menefee edged Edwards in last year’s special election, 29% to 26%. State Rep. Jolanda Jones, who finished third in November with 19% of the vote, has endorsed Edwards. The four other Democratic contenders received a combined 9% of the vote. Five Republican candidates collectively received about 15% of the vote. The remaining 2% was split among independent and third-party candidates.

Former U.S. Rep. Erica Lee Carter endorsed Menefee. Lee Carter is the daughter of Sheila Jackson Lee, a Democrat who represented the area in Congress for nearly 30 years before her death in July 2024. Lee Carter briefly occupied the seat in 2024 before Turner took office. She was not a candidate in the special election.

As of Jan. 11, Menefee had spent about $1.8 million on his campaign, compared with about $1.5 million for Edwards. He had about $389,000 in the bank, while Edwards had about $281,000.

Almost 300 miles away in Tarrant County, voters in state Senate District 9 will elect a replacement for Republican Kelly Hancock, who left office in 2025 to become acting state comptroller.

Democrat Taylor Rehmet was the top vote-getter in the Nov. 4 special election with about 48% of the vote, falling short of the majority vote required to avoid a runoff. Republican Leigh Wambsganss placed second with about 36% of the vote, followed by Republican John Huffman with about 16%.

Donald Trump carried the district in 2024 with about 58% of the vote.

The winner will complete the remainder of Hancock’s term, although the Senate is not scheduled to meet again until 2027. Republicans hold an 18-11 majority, with two previously Republican-held seats vacant.

The Associated Press does not make projections and will declare a winner only when it’s determined there is no scenario that would allow the trailing candidates to close the gap. If a race has not been called, the AP will continue to cover any newsworthy developments, such as candidate concessions or declarations of victory. In doing so, the AP will make clear that it has not yet declared a winner and explain why.

Recounts in Texas are automatic only in the event of a tie vote. A losing candidate may request a recount if the margin is less than 10% of the total vote or if fewer than 1,000 votes were cast. Recounts of electronic voting system results can be requested regardless of the vote margin. The AP may declare a winner in a race that is eligible for a recount if it can determine the lead is too large for a recount or legal challenge to change the outcome.

When do polls close?

Polls close at 7 p.m. CST, which is 8 p.m. EST.

What’s on the ballot?

The AP will provide vote results and declare winners in the special runoff elections for the 18th Congressional District as well as in state Senate District 9.

Who gets to vote?

Voters registered in the 18th Congressional District or state Senate District 9 may participate in the special runoff elections in their district.

What do turnout and advance vote look like?

There were about 381,000 voters registered in the 18th District in the 2025 special election. About 76,000 people voted in that election, or about 20% of registered voters. Slightly more than half the voters (51%) voted early or by absentee ballot.

As of Tuesday, nearly 14,000 ballots had been cast in the 18th Congressional District and about 45,000 in state Senate District 9.

How long does vote counting usually take?

In the Nov. 4 special congressional election, the AP first reported results at 8:18 p.m. EST. The last vote update of the night was at 2:09 a.m. EST with more than 99% of the total vote counted.

When are early and absentee votes released?

In both Harris and Tarrant counties, the first vote update of the night typically includes all or nearly all the results of early and absentee voting. But in Saturday’s special congressional runoff, a significant portion of early voting results in Harris County will not be available until a week after the election. Early voting in the county was extended for two additional days after some early voting sites were shut down due to inclement weather. Votes cast on these additional days will be treated as provisional ballots and reviewed and tabulated for release on Feb. 6.

In November, Menefee led Edwards among early voters, 33% to 25%. These votes made up about 48% of the total special election vote. Edwards barely edged Menefee among Election Day voters, 26% to 25%. Election Day votes comprised about 49% of the total vote.