On March 8, 2005, a special election was held in the California's 5th congressional district to choose a U.S. Representative to replace Bob Matsui, who had died of pneumonia shortly after being re-elected in the 2004 elections. Matsui's wife, Doris, was quickly able to win support from the Democratic Party officials, and ended up winning over two-thirds of the vote in the special primary election, meaning a run-off would not be needed. As of 2021, this is the last time a widow succeeded their spouse in Congress.[a] Cite error: There are <ref group=lower-alpha> tags or {{efn}} templates on this page, but the references will not show without a {{reflist|group=lower-alpha}} template or {{notelist}} template (see the help page).
