After disgraced ex-congressman Blake Farenthold resigned his seat in the House amid a sexual harassment scandal, Michael Cloud has temporarily replaced the representative in a special election.
In April, Gov. Greg Abbott called for a special election to elect a representative for the 27th Congressional District, which covers parts of Bastrop and Caldwell counties and cities as far south as Corpus Christi, Port Aransas, Rockport and Victoria. For a map of the district, click here. On June 30, voters elected Michael Cloud to represent them until an election in November.
U.S. Rep. Farenthold, who served in the U.S. House since 2011, settled a sexual harassment claim brought by a former staffer with $84,000 in taxpayer funds, according to a Politico report published in December. The settlement stems form a 2014 case brought by Lauren Greene, a former Farenthold staffer. Both parties agreed to drop the case in 2015, but the terms of the settlement were not clear at the time.
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“Since being elected to Congress in 2010, I’ve worked to make government more efficient and responsive, cut government spending, repeal Obamacare, protect life and reduce the debt," his statement read in part following the announcement. "Locally, I’ve worked tirelessly to get federal funding for the widening and deepening project at the Port of Corpus Christi and help our other area ports and military facilities. I’ve also been extremely successful in working with our communities on recovering from Hurricane Harvey."