State Rep. David Cote (Hillsborough District 3) resigned on Wednesday, July 5.

Cote was first elected to the state’s House of Representatives in the 1980s and was never sworn in after winning the 2022 election due to health concerns.

In 2021, he was among the plaintiffs in a federal lawsuit arguing that requiring ill lawmakers to attend in person during the coronavirus pandemic violated the Americans with Disabilities Act.

A federal judge denied the plaintiffs request for a preliminary injunction, and the case remains unsettled. With his resignation, the Legislature now has three vacant seats.