On June 19, Georgia held a special election in the 9th U.S. House district to fill a vacancy. Georgia special elections do not feature party nominees; instead any individual who wishes to run, pays a filing fee to get on the ballot. Six Republicans, 3 Democrats, and a Libertarian were on the ballot. The Libertarian, Jim Sendelbach, received 1.34% of the vote, placing 8th in the 10-candidate field.

The six Republicans combined received 70.3% of the vote; the three Democrats combined received 28.3% of the vote. In November 2006, the Republican nominee, Charlie Norwood, had defeated his Democratic opponent by 74.3% to 25.7%.

There will be a run-off on July 17 in the Georgia special election. It will probably be between two Republicans, Jim Whitehead and Paul Broun, since no one got a majority and since those two placed first and second. However, the results show only a 200 vote difference between the 2nd-place finisher and the 3rd-place finisher, Democrat James Marlow. Since the results aren’t final yet, it is conceivable the run-off could be between Whitehead and Marlow.

Georgia special congressional elections have always been open to anyone, without the need for a petition. In the past, though, no party labels were permitted. The last time any minor party members were on the ballot in a Georgia special election was 1983, when a Socialist Worker, Sara Jean Johnston, polled .07% of the votes; and a Prohibitionist, Marshall Uncapher, polled .04%. It is always difficult for a minor party member to poll a large vote when there are ten or more candidates running.