Democrat Kweisi Mfume wins special election to replace Cummings

Democrat Kweisi Mfume won Tuesday’s special election to replace the late Rep. Elijah Cummings (D) in Maryland’s 7th District.

Mfume defeated Republican Kimberly Klacik to win the seat, which had been held by Cummings since 1996 until his death in October.

The Associated Press called the race after 8 p.m. local time.

Mfume, who calls himself “a progressive moderate,” held the seat for five terms before leaving in 1996 to become the CEO of the NAACP. He will serve out the rest of Cummings’s term but is heavily expected to win reelection in November if he chooses to run again in the staunchly Democratic district. 

Tuesday’s special election was Maryland’s first test of conducting a race almost entirely by mail amid the spread of the coronavirus. While there were three in-person voting centers scattered across the district, the vast majority of ballots were cast via mail.

Cummings, who chaired the House Oversight and Reform Committee, died at age 68 from complications from long-standing health issues.