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Doug Adams at MSNBC’s FirstRead speculates on the Delaware Senate seat currently held by Veep-elect Joe Biden: Biden aiming to keep seat in family?

Biden told a local TV station right before Election Day he didn’t want to resign his seat right away, leading to speculation about whether he is trying to deny the outgoing governor of Delaware — Democrat Ruth Ann Minner — the chance to appoint his successor.

Under that scenario, Biden would wait until moments before he is sworn in as vice president to resign his seat, which could enable the new governor, Jack Markell, to make the appointment.

Adams goes on to speculate that Markell could then appoint a placeholder, rather than someone with long-term aspirations, so that Joe Biden’s son, Beau (the state’s AG current on active duty in Iraq could then run for the seat in the 2010 special election.

I honestly have no idea whether this is a viable scenario, nor it is clear why Biden would prefer Markell to Minner as the person in charge of filling his seat (save for some speculation in the piece as to the likely preferences of both persons in terms of replcement).

All of this leads James Joyner to comment on the practice of family members taking on the seats of persons departing office and specially argues for the abolition of appointed replacements, but laments the fact that those processes are state-based. I would agree with him about the problem of appointed replacements and would prefer that the XVII Amendment be changed to remove the line about Senate vacancies: “Provided, that the legislature of any state may empower the executive thereof to make temporary appointments until the people fill the vacancies by election as the legislature may direct.”

Indeed, I would prefer an amendment that would automatically put into play elections to fill any legislative vacancies (House or Senate) within a certain number of days of the vacancy–say 90 days max. I wouldn’t mind the governor to have the ability to appoint a temporary Representative or Senator until the election, so as to guarantee the state representation, but I would like that person to be ineligible for the special election so as to remove the ability of the governor to influence the electoral process by giving the appointee incumbent status.

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The views expressed in the comments are the sole responsibility of the person leaving those comments. They do not reflect the opinion of the author of PoliBlog, nor have they been vetted by the author.

One Response to “On Senate Vacancies”

MSS Says:
November 18th, 2008 at 1:47 pm
In principle, I agree that an election as soon as possible is desirable. However, the low turnout of special elections gives me pause. Maybe it is better to wait till the next regularly scheduled election to fill the seat, with an interim replacement. Perhaps the interim should not be eligible to run in the upcoming election. And certainly it would be best if, in a transition period, it was the newly elected governor, rather than the lame duck, who nominated the interim replacement.

Hey, it looks like that’s what’s going to happen in Delaware: it will be the new governor who appoints, and the interim Senator is expected to be someone without ambition for the full term. Splendid!

However, I do think an interim should be elected by the legislature (as were all Senators, by US Constitutional mandate before the 27th Amendment), rather than nominated by the governor, subject only to confirmation by the legislature.

(Actually, I advocate abolition of the Senate as we know it, but that’s a different discussion.)

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Taylor Doug Adams at MSNBC’s FirstRead speculates on the Delaware Senate seat currently held by Veep-elect Joe Biden: Biden aiming to keep seat in family? Biden told a local TV station right before Election Day he didn’t want to resign his seat right away, leading to speculation about whether he is trying to deny the outgoing governor of Delaware — Democrat Ruth Ann Minner — the chance to appoint his successor. Under that scenario, Biden would wait until moments before he is sworn in as vice president to resign his seat, which could enable the new governor, Jack Markell, to make the appointment. Adams goes on to speculate that Markell could then appoint a placeholder, rather than someone with long-term aspirations, so that Joe Biden’s son, Beau (the state’s AG current on active duty in Iraq could then run for the seat in the 2010 special election. I honestly have no idea whether this is a viable scenario, nor it is clear why Biden would prefer Markell to Minner as the person in charge of filling his seat (save for some speculation in the piece as to the likely preferences of both persons in terms of replcement). All of this leads James Joyner to comment on the practice of family members taking on the seats of persons departing office and specially argues for the abolition of appointed replacements, but laments the fact that those processes are state-based. I would agree with him about the problem of appointed replacements and would prefer that the XVII Amendment be changed to remove the line about Senate vacancies: “Provided, that the legislature of any state may empower the executive thereof to make temporary appointments until the people fill the vacancies by election as the legislature may direct.” Indeed, I would prefer an amendment that would automatically put into play elections to fill any legislative vacancies (House or Senate) within a certain number of days of the vacancy–say 90 days max. I wouldn’t mind the governor to have the ability to appoint a temporary Representative or Senator until the election, so as to guarantee the state representation, but I would like that person to be ineligible for the special election so as to remove the ability of the governor to influence the electoral process by giving the appointee incumbent status. Share on Facebook Sphere: Related Content Filed under: 2008 Campaign, 2010 Elections, US Politics \| \| The views expressed in the comments are the sole responsibility of the person leaving those comments. They do not reflect the opinion of the author of PoliBlog, nor have they been vetted by the author. One Response to “On Senate Vacancies” MSS Says: November 18th, 2008 at 1:47 pm In principle, I agree that an election as soon as possible is desirable. However, the low turnout of special elections gives me pause. Maybe it is better to wait till the next regularly scheduled election to fill the seat, with an interim replacement. Perhaps the interim should not be eligible to run in the upcoming election. And certainly it would be best if, in a transition period, it was the newly elected governor, rather than the lame duck, who nominated the interim replacement. Hey, it looks like that’s what’s going to happen in Delaware: it will be the new governor who appoints, and the interim Senator is expected to be someone without ambition for the full term. Splendid! However, I do think an interim should be elected by the legislature (as were all Senators, by US Constitutional mandate before the 27th Amendment), rather than nominated by the governor, subject only to confirmation by the legislature. (Actually, I advocate abolition of the Senate as we know it, but that’s a different discussion.)	blog advertising is good for you Sterling Jewelry Time Clocks Food Equipment Office Machines Cash Registers Ricoh Fax Machines IBM Typewriters Copy Machines Office Supplies Office Equipment Blogroll --- Advertisement Advertisement