US Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee's daughter Erica Lee Carter enters special election to serve rest of mother's term in House

HOUSTON, Texas (KTRK) — U.S. Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee’s daughter, Erica Lee Carter, announced on Monday that she wants to “finish for my mom” and finish the rest of her late mother’s term in the current congressional session.

In a statement, Carter mentioned the Nov. 5 special election to elect a new 18th Congressional District representative to complete Jackson Lee’s unfinished term. The district stretches as far north as the Westfield and Bush Intercontinental Airport area and as far south as the Old Spanish Trail area.

The video above is from the Aug. 10, 2024, edition of This Week in Texas.

“The people of the 18th Congressional District re-elected my mother to the 118th Congress to protect their interest and uphold our democratic values. Congresswoman Jackson Lee kept their interests in her heart and mind until the very end. Since then, so many community leaders and democratic stalwarts have requested that I consider completing her term this year by running in the November 5th Special Election. After careful consideration, the answer is YES,” Carter wrote.

Earlier this month, Carter and her brother endorsed former Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner as their mother’s success to her seat. Carter intends to run for the rest of the term but not the next one. The special election winner would have a little under two months to serve.

Turner is one of up to 17 people seeking the Democratic nomination to succeed the late congresswoman, who died on July 19 at the age of 74. Jackson Lee won the Democratic primary earlier this year to retain her seat. A candidate forum took place last Saturday. On Tuesday, precinct chairs will vote. Whoever gets 50% plus 1% gets the nomination. If there’s no winner on the first ballot, there’s a runoff between the top two vote-getters to decide the nominee.

As for the special election to fill the unfinished term, the Harris County Clerk’s Office confirms that it will be apparent to voters on the ballot that it is a special election. Still, it will be on a different part of the ballot than the general election race, which will pit the chosen Democratic nominee against the Republican nominee, Lana Centonze. Those who want to submit their names for the special election must file their applications by Thursday, Aug. 22.