Maryland Gov. Wes Moore is calling a special session of the General Assembly to allow the House of Delegates to elect and swear in a new speaker after Del. Adrienne A. Jones stepped down last week.

The special session will begin on Dec. 16, the governor’s office announced Tuesday.

Del. Joseline Peña-Melnyk, a Democrat representing parts of Prince George’s and Anne Arundel counties, is expected to be elected the next speaker of the House, after other top contenders announced Sunday they’d dropped out to support her nomination.

It’s not immediately clear how long the session will last, but a special session can be no longer than 30 days, according to state law.

One order of business besides swearing in the new speaker: Lawmakers must address any of the governor’s vetoes they’d like to override. Lawmakers previously said they would vote to override Moore’s veto of a bill studying reparations for slavery and discrimination.

Other vetoed bills that lawmakers could revive include measures to study energy issues and data centers.

Any vetoed bill must earn 85 votes in the House of Delegates and 29 votes in the Senate to be overturned.

The session also could be an opportunity to consider redrawing the boundaries of Maryland’s congressional districts — as states across the nation engage in back-and-forth partisan gerrymandering — but that’s increasingly unlikely.

Neither Moore nor his Governor’s Redistricting Advisory Commission have issued maps for the public or lawmakers to review. And while the majority of Democrats in the House of Delegates appear to support a redistricting effort, Senate President Bill Ferguson and the majority of Senate Democrats do not.

Moore’s proclamation only explicitly notes the reason for the special session is to elect a new speaker, with no indication that he would request lawmakers to adopt new congressional district maps.

Once the General Assembly is in session, lawmakers can introduce bills on any topic they wish, however the presiding officers are not required to hold hearings or take votes on all bills.

The governor can declare a special session, but only chamber leaders have the power to end it.

Ferguson, a Baltimore Democrat, said in a statement: “The Senate supports our colleagues in the House of Delegates and is looking forward to joining them as they elect a new speaker.”

While lawmakers are in the special session — whether it’s for one day or multiple days — they and the governor will be subject to a ban on political fundraising, as they are during regular General Assembly sessions.

The next regular legislative session is scheduled to begin Jan. 14.