Gov. Jerry Brown called a special election to fill California’s Assembly District 39 seat.

A primary election will be held April 3 with a potential runoff to follow on June 5.

The seat opened after Raul Bocanegra resigned amid sexual misconduct allegations.

U.S. Sen. Al Franken announced he would step down amid sexual harassment allegations on December 7, 2018.

Franken’s resignation allows Gov. Mark Dayton to make a temporary appointment to fill the vacancy until the special election is held.

Dayton has yet to announce an appointment for Franken’s seat.

The special election will be held on November 6, 2018, and the special primary election will be held on August 14, 2018.

Gov. Rick Snyder has called a special election to fill the vacancy for the 13^th District of the U.S. House of Representatives.

Rep. John Conyers resigned on December 6, 2017, amid sexual harassment allegations.

The special general election will be held on November 6, 2018.

The special primary election will be held on August 7, 2018.

Gov. Mark Dayton has called special elections for House District 23B and Senate District 54. The special elections will be held on February 12, 2018.

State Rep. Tony Cornish and state Sen. Dan Schoen both resigned amid sexual harassment allegations.

A special primary, if necessary, will be held on January 29, 2018.

On December 5, Elections Canada announced a by-election for the House of Commons will be held for the seat for Chicoutimi–Le Fjord (Quebec). The seat was vacated by MP Denis Lemieux, who announced his plan to resign in November for family reasons.

On December 4, Stéphane Perrault, Acting Chief Electoral Officer of Canada, received official notice from the Speaker of the House of Commons that the seat was vacant. Canadian law requires the date of this by-election be announced between December 15, 2017, and June 2, 2018, which will signal the start of the by-election period.

Recapping a busy week in government, campaign finance and ethics news in this week’s video digest.

Two special elections will take place in the beginning of the new year to fill vacancies in the House and Senate.

Secretary of State Brian Kemp set special elections for House District 111 and Senate District 17 for January 9, 2018, with a runoff, if necessary, scheduled for February 6.

Sen. Rick Jeffares resigned the District 17 seat to run for lieutenant governor, while Rep. Brian Strickland stepped down from the District 111 seat to run for the District 17 seat. Jeffares has endorsed Strickland to take his place.

The U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Kentucky has issued a permanent injunction, prohibiting certain portions of state campaign finance and ethics law from being enforced.

Earlier this year, U.S. District Judge William Bertelsman ruled the prohibition on lobbyists providing gifts and campaign contributions to lawmakers unconstitutional. The judge also found the definition of caucus campaign committee unconstitutional because it only refers to Republican or Democratic caucuses.

Pending appeal, the Kentucky Registry of Election Finance and the Kentucky Legislative Ethics Commission continued enforcing these statutory provisions. Now, KREF and KLEC are permanently enjoined from doing so.

Campaign Finance

Democrat Doug Jones has raised and spent far more money than Roy Moore in bid for U.S. Senate seat by Brian Lawson for WHNT

Missouri: Former Jackson County executive Mike Sanders accused of using disabled man to pocket campaign donations by Dave D’Marko for Fox4KC

Rhode Island: Two lawmakers fined by R.I. Elections Board for campaign-finance breaches by Patrick Anderson for The Providence Journal

Ethics

House Ethics Committee To Investigate Blake Farenthold For Sexual Harassment Allegations by Shreesha Ghosh for The International Business Times

Ex-Ethics director to file second ethics complaint against Conway by John Bowden for The Hill

Rep. Trent Franks of Texas resigns amid Ethics investigation by Alan Fram for WJLA

Rep. Devin Nunes cleared of allegations that he disclosed classified information in Russia investigation by Sarah Wire for The Los Angeles Times

Lobbying

California: Backlash ripples through California politics after women denounce sexual harassment by Calmatters for The Press Enterprise

Canada: Premier’s chief of staff admits late filing, appears to break lobbying rules from Yahoo! News

Florida: Gubernatorial candidate Graham proposes reforms to prevent sexual harassment by Troy Kinsey for Spectrum News 9

Annunciation Greek Orthodox Church in Akron, Ohio has an amazing group offering comfort to some wonderful people in need.

Each month, members of the Women’s Philoptochos Society are creating lovely quilts for the military, special quilts for those in burn units, and for many other people in need! As well as being comfy, these hand-crafted quilts are works of art made with loving care.

State and Federal Communications is proud to do its part by sponsoring the cost of shipping for these precious gifts.

Campaign Finance

Kentucky: Did Jeff Hoover Violate Campaign Finance Laws? It’s Unclear by Lisa Autry for WEKU

New Jersey: N.J. power broker DiVincenzo settles campaign-finance case for $20,000 by Andrew Seidman for The Philadelphia Inquirer

Ethics

Arizona: Arizona, tax money to be used for House ethics investigation by Howard Fischer for The Arizona Daily Sun

Florida: City introduces new ethics ordinances by Mariel Carbone for WCTV

Massachusetts: State Senate opens ethics inquiry into Stan Rosenberg by Joshua Miller for The Boston Globe

Vermont: Scott adds sexual harassment clause to code of ethics by Neal Goswami for WCAX

Lobbying

Lobbyists push GOP in last-minute scramble to save tax breaks by Theodoric Meyer, Aaron Lorenzo and Colin Wilhelm for Politico

Healthcare lobbyists not optimistic on changing GOP tax bill by Harris Meyer for Modern Healthcare

Democrat Wendy Carrillo defeated Democrat Luis Lopez in a special election to fill the California Assembly District 51 seat. Carrillo is a former union organizer and radio host who has the endorsement of the state Democratic party.

The seat was left open after Democrat Jimmy Gomez was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives in July.

Carrillo and Lopez advanced to Tuesday’s election by finishing first and second among 13 candidates in an October 3 primary.

Lopez conceded late Tuesday, December 5.

Campaign Finance

New York: Lawmaker’s business boosted by aide’s public campaign funds by Chris Bragg for The Albany Times Union

Ohio: Columbus City Council May Clear Up Campaign Finance Disclosure Requirements by Adora Namigadde for WOSU

Elections

Georgia: More elections scheduled for January to fill state Senate and House seats by Mark Niesse for The Atlanta Journal Constitution

Minnesota: Special elections set to replace departed Minnesota lawmakers accused of sexual harassment by Erin Golden for The Minneapolis Star Tribune

Ethics

Obama’s Ethics Chief: Trump Lawyer’s Claim The President Can’t Face Obstruction Charge is “Baloney” by Harriet Sinclair for Newsweek

Conyers Won’t Seek Re-election in Wake of Harassment Claims, Relative Says by Yamiche Alcindor for The New York Times

Manafort Associate Has Russian Intelligence Ties, Court Document Says by Kenneth Vogel for The New York Times

Massachusetts: Rosenberg steps down as ethics probe begins by Christian Wade for The Salem News

Lobbying

Former Podesta, BGR lobbyists start new firm by Theodoric Meyer for Politico

Procurement

Govt flags new IT hardware procurement marketplace by Leon Spencer for ARN

On December 1, Gov. Jim Justice called a special session to convene on December 4 to consider legislation to authorize the sale of state road bonds.

The special session coincides with the Legislature’s monthly interim meetings scheduled to begin on December 3 and conclude on December 5.

Pictured: West Virginia Governor Jim Justice