What to expect in the Georgia special election to fill Marjorie Taylor Greene’s former seat

Washington (AFP) – All political roads lead to Rome. Rome, Georgia, that is.

Or at least they will on Tuesday, when voters in Georgia’s 14th Congressional District will elect a replacement for former Republican U.S. Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, who resigned in January after a public disagreement with President Donald Trump.

He watches: Marjorie Taylor Greene talks about President Trump as she prepares to leave Congress

Republicans have a narrow majority in the chamber, and a Democratic victory in a district where Trump received 68% of the vote in 2024 would narrow the GOP margin even further.

A crowded field of 22 candidates initially filed to run for the vacant U.S. House seat, but that number dropped to 17 active contenders after a handful of withdrawals from the race. All candidates will compete on the same ballot, regardless of their political affiliation. If no candidate receives a majority of votes, the two candidates with the highest votes will advance to a runoff on April 7.

The 12 Republicans running in the special election include Clay Fuller, the state attorney general who is endorsed by Trump, and former state Sen. Colton Moore.

He watches: Trump promotes economic agenda at a rally in Georgia ahead of the March special election

Three Democrats are also vying for the seat, including Sean Harris, a retired Army brigadier general who is challenging Greene in 2024. Harris outpaced the rest of the multipartisan field in fundraising as of February 18, with about $4.3 million raised and about $290,000 in the bank. Fuller had the second largest war chest, about $238,000 in the bank. He raised about $787,000 over the course of the campaign.

The 14th Congressional District, in the northwest corner of Georgia, borders Alabama and Tennessee. It spans 10 counties, with Paulding being the most populous, followed by part of Cobb. It is home to the cities of Rome, Dalton, Acworth and parts of Kennesaw.

Harris received about 36% of the district’s vote in his 2024 bid. His best performance was in Cobb, where he received about 49% to Greene’s 51%. He received about 41% of the vote in Paulding County, his second-best showing.

He watches: What do you know about the resignation of Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene and her disagreement with Trump?

Green received about 63% districtwide, with her best showing coming in Murray County.

Trump’s endorsement should be a boost for Fuller, considering Trump outperformed Greene throughout the district. But with the Democratic vote split between just three candidates compared to the GOP’s 12, Harris could earn one of two runoff spots if he performs well in 2024.

Voters in the state’s 53rd Senate District will elect a replacement for Moore, while the state’s 94th and 130th House Districts will also hold special elections to fill vacant seats. Republicans control both chambers of the state Legislature, and Tuesday’s special election will not threaten their majority.

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

There is no requirement for an automatic recount in Georgia, but the losing candidate may request a recount if the margin is less than or equal to 0.5% of the total vote. The AP may declare a winner in a race eligible for a recount if it can determine that the lead is too large for a recount or legal challenge to change the outcome.

Here are some basic facts about the election and data points that AP’s decision-making office will be monitoring as the votes are counted:

When do the polls close?

Polls close at 7 p.m. ET.

What’s on the ballot?

The AP will present the voting results and announce the winners of the special elections for the 14th Congressional District, the 53rd State Senate District and the 94th and 130th State House Districts.

Who is entitled to vote?

Any registered voter may participate in the special election in his or her district.

What does turnout and advance voting look like?

As of Thursday, there were about 521,000 registered voters in the 14th Congressional District. Voter registration in Georgia is not organized by party.

About 378,000 votes were cast in the 2024 general election in the 14th District, representing about 74% of registered voters. About 76% of the votes in that election were cast before Election Day.

Nearly 54,000 votes have already been cast in the special election for the U.S. House of Representatives as of Friday.

How long does the vote counting process usually take?

In the 2024 general election, The Associated Press first reported results in the 14th Congressional District at 7:10 p.m. ET, or 10 minutes after polls closed. As of 11:24 PM ET, about 99% of all votes had been tabulated. The last voting update that night was from Cobb County at 4:46 a.m. ET, with about 99.9% of the total votes counted.

When are early and absentee ballots issued?

All 10 counties in the 14th Congressional District tend to post some or all of their absentee voting results in the first voting update of the night. Four counties, including the two largest counties, Paulding and Cobb, also tend to include all of their results from early in-person voting in the first vote update. Since the 2020 election, Democrats have been more likely to cast ballots early or by mail. In jurisdictions that publish mail and early voting results at the beginning of the night, this could result in the Democratic candidate having an initial lead in the vote count until votes from in-person ballots are counted on Election Day.

Are we there yet?

As of Tuesday, there will be 238 days until the 2026 midterm elections.