California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger (R) announced Tuesday that the special House election to replace Hilda Solis, who recently became secretary of Labor, will take place on July 14.

But the more significant date is the special Congressional primary, which has been set to coincide with a statewide special election on May 19.

Under California law, all candidates in a special House election appear together on one primary ballot, regardless of party, and voters can select the candidate of their choice. If no one gets 50 percent of the vote, the top vote-getters from each party advance to the special general election.

The race to replace Solis in the San Gabriel Valley 32nd district is shaping up to be a battle between state Sen. Gil Cedillo (D) and state Board of Equalization Chairwoman Judy Chu (D). Investment banker Emanuel Pleitez (D) is also running an aggressive campaign.

Special election turnouts are traditionally very low, but turnout in the primary is expected to be higher than usual because of the statewide special election on tax and budget measures.