Drew Springer (R) defeated Shelley Luther (R) in the special general runoff election in Texas State Senate District 30 on December 19, earning 56.5% of the vote.
The general election took place on September 29. As no candidate earned more than 50% of the vote in the general election, the top two finishers advanced to the general runoff. Luther and Springer each received 32% of the vote. Jacob Minter (D) followed with 21%. No other candidate received over 10% of the vote.
Springer will replace Pat Fallon (R) for the remainder of his term, expiring in January 2023. Fallon submitted his letter of resignation on August 22, with an effective date of resignation on January 4. On August 8, local Republican Party county and precinct chairs selected Fallon to replace incumbent John Ratcliffe on the general election ballot for Texas’ 4th Congressional District after Ratcliffe withdrew from the race, following his confirmation as director of national intelligence.
This special election was the last state legislative special election of 2020. There were 59 state legislative special elections held in 27 states in 2020. The Democratic Party saw a net gain of six seats from those special elections. In special elections between 2011 and 2020, one party (either Republicans or Democrats) saw an average net gain of four seats nationally each year.
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