Gov. Greg Abbott on Thursday announced a special election in May to fill the Texas Senate seat left empty by Brandon Creighton, the Houston-area Republican who will lead the Texas Tech University System .

Candidates for the Senate District 4 election must file to run by March 3 and early voting will begin April 20 ahead of the May 2 election, according to Abbott’s office.

The seat has been vacant since Oct. 2, when Creighton formally resigned from the Senate in a letter to Abbott. Though the district will go without representation for at least seven months, the Legislature is not expected to convene during that period, with the next regular legislative session set to begin in January 2027.

Longtime Montgomery County District Attorney Brett Ligon has launched a bid for the seat w

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