A special election will be held Tuesday in Congressional District 6 to elect a representative to the U.S. House of Representatives.
The seat became vacant when Republican incumbent Michael Waltz was nominated by President Donald Trump to serve as National Security Advisor.
Currently, Republicans control the House by the razor thin margin of 219 to 215. That means this race, which impacts residents in sections of both Lake and Marion county, is of critical importance to both parties.
However, early voting turnout in both counties has been extremely low.
In Lake County, early voting turnout has been 6.61 percent. Among the eligible 59,638 voters in Lake County, only 3,940 have cast ballots in early voting. Of those ballots, 2,683 were cast by Republicans and 1,257 were cast by Democrats.
In Marion County, early voting turnout was 5.71 percent. Among the eligible 91,930 voters, 5,252 cast their ballots during early voting. Of those ballots, 3,698 were cast by Republicans and 1,554 percent were cast by Democrats.
The winner of the two parties’ primaries will face off in the general election on April 1.
The Republican candidates are:
• Aaron Baker
• Randy Fine
• Ehsan Joarder
The Democratic candidates are:
• Purvi Bangdiwala
• George Selmont
• Josh Weil
