With a death and a defection, Republican control of the House falls to 217 seats over 212 Democrats

With the death of Rep. Donald Payne (D-NJ) and the resignation of Rep. Mike Gallagher (R-WI), just 429 members fill the 435 seats in the House of Representatives as of Wednesday. Republicans control a razor-thin majority of 217 seats, with Democrats in control of 212 seats.

In California, the open seat of former Speaker Kevin McCarthy is up for a special election on May 21. Under the Golden State’s jungle primary system, the conservative Central Valley nominated two Republicans to head to the runoff next month, ensuring the seat will remain under GOP control.

The eastern Colorado seat vacated by former Rep. Ken Buck is up for a special election on June 25. The Republican reportedly timed his resignation specifically to prevent Rep. Lauren Boebert

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