Georgia House special election to replace Barry Fleming set for February

ATLANTA (AP) — A special election to fill a vacancy in a Georgia state House district near Augusta is set for Feb. 13.

Gov. Brian Kemp on Wednesday announced the date for the election to fill the House District 125 seat formerly held by Republican Barry Fleming. The district covers parts of Columbia and McDuffie counties.

Fleming resigned after Kemp appointed him to serve as a superior court judge in Columbia County. He initially won three terms starting in 2002. Fleming left the House to run unsuccessfully for Congress in 2008, but won reelection in 2012 and served until he resigned.

Qualifying for the race is tentatively set for Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday. Members of all parties will run together in the special election with no primaries to select nominees. If no one wins a majority on Feb. 13, the top two candidates will advance to a runoff on March 12, the same day as Georgia’s presidential primary.

Kemp will also have to set a special election to replace Republican state Sen. Mike Dugan of Carrollton, who is resigning to run for Congress.