Common Council President Michael J. Murphy this morning called for an Aug. 18 special election for the 11th Aldermanic District seat left vacant after the sudden passing last month of Ald. Joe Dudzik.

President Murphy made the special election announcement at the end of today’s meeting of the full Common Council at City Hall. The meeting began with a minute of silence in memory of Alderman Dudzik, who died in a May 22 motorcycle accident on W. Morgan Ave. near S. 74th St.

"Knowing how much Ald. Dudzik truly loved serving his district and his constituents, I believe he would want the election to take place as soon as is reasonable, so service and representation can continue as needed," President Murphy said.

Any person intending to run for the 11th District Aldermanic seat should register as a candidate by filing a Campaign Registration Statement with the City of Milwaukee Election Commission, City Hall, Room 501. According to state statute, the circulation of nomination papers can begin, effective today. The deadline for submitting nomination papers to the city Election Commission is 5 p.m. on Tuesday, June 23. 

A successor shall be elected to serve the remainder of the unexpired term which will expire on April 18, 2016.

State law requires a person running for an aldermanic seat to reside in that district on the date of the election. There is no requirement for a person to live in the district while seeking office, including while circulating nomination papers.

If there are more than two official candidates, a primary election for the seat will be held on July 21, with the top two vote-getters moving on to the final election, scheduled for Tuesday, Aug. 18.

Additional information on running for public office is available on the Election Commission website at milwaukee.gov/election.

In addition, Common Council President Murphy announced today that he will assume two Common Council committee seats held by Alderman Joe Dudzik.

"In the wake of the sudden and tragic passing of Alderman Dudzik, until further notice I will assume the seats on the Public Safety and Finance and Personnel committees that he very ably held," President Murphy said.

President Murphy, chair of the Steering and Rules Committee, was the longtime chair of the Finance and Personnel Committee prior to his election to Council president in early 2014. The longest serving current Council member, President Murphy was first elected to the Council in 1989 and has served on every Council standing committee during his career.