WV Governor to push for a 2010 special election to fill seat formerly head by Byrd

Why? Quite possibly because he wants it for himself:

West Virginia Gov. Joe Manchin (D) Wednesday paved the way for a 2010 special election to replace the late Sen. Robert Byrd (D-W.Va.) and said he would consider running for the seat this year.

Manchin said at a press conference that he will ask state Attorney General Darrell McGraw (D) to issue an opinion on whether the law allows for a 2010 special election, rather than a 2012 one. Beyond that, he left open the possibility of changing the law through a special session of the state legislature.

Regardless of how the change is made, though, Manchin said he will be behind the effort. He said he doesn’t want to appoint someone who will serve without the voters’ consent for two- and-a-half years.

“I can’t do it,” Manchin said. “I believe in the power of the vote.”

The change would add another competitive seat to a 2010 cycle already chock full of pickup opportunities for Republicans. The addition of another seat to the map would expand their chances of significantly diminishing the Democrats’ majority or even retaking the Senate.

The Secretary of State’s office ruled last week, after Byrd’s death, that the law didn’t allow for a special election this year, and said an appointee would serve until the 2012 general election. Since then, though, Republicans and some Democrats have pushed for a quicker vote on Byrd’s replacement. Among those urging the earlier date include the Manchin-allied Chamber of Commerce and Secretary of State Natalie Tennant.

Rep. Shelley Moore Capito (R-W.Va.), who is seen as the most likely GOP candidate for the seat, joined the chorus Wednesday morning, urging the legislature to speed up the process and set a 2010 special election.

“The power of our vote should never be limited or delayed in selecting our elected officials, and 28 months is too long for any person to serve in an elective office through appointment,” Capito said.

Capito’s call could be seen as indication that she would run for the seat this year, and indeed, and earlier special election would appear to serve her political purposes. Manchin has previously said he intended to serve out his term, and if that remains the case, it would mean Capito wouldn’t have to run against the extremely popular governor.

But Manchin said Wednesday that he would indeed entertain the idea of running this year, if the special election is moved up.

“I would highly consider that,” he said.

Yeah, I bet he would.

The Fix also correctly points out that a potential 2010 special election for the seat formerly held by Byrd does not necessarily mean an “easy win” for Republicans:

Top offices in West Virginia are currently dominated by Democrats, but the state went 56 percent to 43 percent for Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) in the 2008 presidential race. Depending upon how the special election candidates shake out, the race would appear to start out as another toss-up.

In the meantime, to learn more about Rep. Shelly Moore Capito, currently running for re-election in West Virginia’s 2nd Congressional district – and the only Republican in the WV Congressional delegation, click here and here.

Simon says:

July 7, 2010 at 1:11 pm

What the law says is that when the remaining portion of the term is longer than thirty months (as here), the temporary appointment lasts “until a successor to the office has timely filed a certificate of candidacy, has been nominated at the primary election next following such timely filing[,] and has thereafter been elected and qualified to fill the unexpired term.” W.V. Code § 3-10-3. That language requires certain things to happen, but says nothing about their timing, i.e. when the primary and general elections it requires must take place. The next slated primary election isn’t until 2012, reasons the Secretary of State, so no one can meet all the statutory criteria until then.

So the issue here is the correctness of her assumption that the matter must be deferred to the next regularly-scheduled election.

I don’t know West Virginia election law in any depth—who has the time?—but it seems unlikely to me that it expressly forbids holding a pair of out-of-sequence special election. (If it did, it would seem potentially vulnerable to as-applied challenges under Art. I § 2 of, and the Seventeenth Amendment to, the federal constitution.) On that assumption, even if the code fails to expressly provide for such an election, the Governor can call an election, citing the Seventeenth Amendment as an independent and direct source of authority (when a vacancy arises, the state’s “executive authority … shall issue writs of election to fill such vacancies”).

Anthony says:

July 7, 2010 at 1:37 pm

Hmmm… Shelley Moore Capito is the daughter of corrupt (and convicted) former governor Arch Moore. There’s a blast from the past.

Great White Rat says:

July 7, 2010 at 6:44 pm

Capito’s call could be seen as indication that she would run for the seat this year,

I’m not sure that’s accurate. Don Surber, who usually has a good feel for the workings of WV politics, disagrees:

Don’t look for Republican Congresswoman Shelley Moore Capito to run against Manchin. She likes the House where she has built up a little seniority and I don’t think she wants to be a senator or governor. Besides, she won’t run against Manchin.