Governor sets special election to fill 11th Congressional District seat

(WXYZ) - The sudden resignation of Thaddeus McCotter has prompted  Lt. Gov. Brian Calley to call a special election to fill the vacancy in the 11th Congressional District.

The lieutenant governor wants to try to save as much of the local tax dollars as possible by making the special election happen at the same time as the already scheduled August 7th primary, but because of the sudden resignation that won't be able to happen.

That's because the primary ballots were already printed when McCotter made his announcement.

In a news release discussing the issue Calley said: "It is extremely disappointing that the district is forced to have a special election that is neither cost-effective nor efficient. Taxpayers deserve better. But the requirement for the governor to call a special election in this situation is clear and we must do so in a way that establishes fair, realistic deadlines for candidates and election officials. We will move forward so that district residents have full representation in Congress for the remainder of the term. I have every confidence that the outstanding election officials throughout the district will get the job done in spite of this challenging timeline."

The special election will be on September 5th, state election officials say the special election will cost about $650,000.