With Senator-elect Mark Kirk possibly being sworn in by Nov. 29th, some constituents in Illinois' 10th Congressional District are wondering if that means they'll be left without representation.
Not exactly.
When Kirk becomes Senator, the district will become vacant. At that point, the House Committee on Administration will take control of the office and oversee staff and constituent services until newly-elected Robert Dold assumes office in January.
"There is no provision for appointing a U.S. House member," said Dold campaign spokesman John McGovern. "Instead, a special election must be held, but that generally only occurs when there's more than six months left in the vacant term. Thus, in this case, with just a few weeks left, a special election would be impractical."
Dold beat out Democrat Dan Seals in Tuesday's election, keeping Kirk's seat in Republican hands.
Kirk will assume office early because he won both the General Election and a special election to finish out the remainder of President Barack Obama's term.
