Question about Wyoming Senate seat.

[DURHAM D]

The Governor (a Dem) appoints the replacement. It must be a Republican. This Senate seat would normally not be up until 2012.

My question - Is the appointment for the remainder of the term or just until the Governor calls a special election?

Notes: Wyoming does not have a Lt. Governor. The next highest ranking state official is a Republican - the Sec. of State. If the Governor steps down to run for the Senate does the Sec. of State become Governor?

Wyoming has election day voter registration.

Wyoming is about 2.5 to 1 Rep to Dem.

[CK_John]

1. He/She will serve remainder of term, no special election.

[MonkeyFunk]

2. nope

there will be an election in 2008 to fill out the remainder of the term. Not a special election, but during the 2008 general.

[CK_John]

3. I don't believe the Gov can limit a fed appointment.

[MonkeyFunk]

4. I don't understand....

He will appoint a replacement until the next General Election, where someone will be elected to fill out the term.

Most states do this.

[CK_John]

6. Not so, Senate appointments are for the office, and are not temporary. House seats

are filled by election only.

[MonkeyFunk]

8. You're simply mistaken

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/19038581/

"According to Peggy Nighswonger, Wyoming’s elections director, the governor has five days to appoint one of the party’s three nominees once he receives the names. That person will serve until the next general election in 2008."


Similarly, Dianne Feinstein replaced John Seymour in 1992, who was appointed to replace Pete Wilson, who became Governor. She was then up for reelection to a full term in 1994.

[DURHAM D]

14. I see that Peggy is a Republican.

She is not an elected official and her office is under the Sec. of State. I assume she was appointed by the Sec. of State but maybe she was appointed by the Governor.

At any rate, when these kinds of transitions happen things get really crazy, really fast. I have not found anything definitive on the special election vs. waiting until the next general election except her statement that you posted. I wonder if this is really written in stone?

I am sure the Wyoming Dems, Senate Dems and the DNC are burning the midnight oil trying to see if they can find a way to call a special.
If their state constitution is silent on this issue we could be in for a battle. On the other hand, it is a Repub state but it would be fun to see an all out fight for that one seat. A seat that if it turned Dem would make Joe Lieberman irrelevant.

Oh well, I will probably get up in the morning to find out that there is a clear clause in their constitution that says until the next general.

[MonkeyFunk]

15. It's pretty standard procedure.

the 17th Amendment says:

"When vacancies happen in the representation of any state in the Senate, the executive authority of such State shall issue writs of election to fill such 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."

As I noted above, Feinstein was was elected for a two year term to fill out Pete Wilson's term, then had to run again 2 years later for a full term.

Similarly, Mendendez of New Jersey was appointed in January of 2006, and had to run that November to fill the rest of the term.

And where did you see that Nighswonger was a republican? She may well be, but I didn't see it in the article.

[DURHAM D]

17. I goggled her.

Every state is different regarding special vs. general election to fill a vacancy for federal offices. I tried to find it in the Wyoming constitution but it has been amended many times and I just didn't feel like reading through it. A year and a half seems like a very long time to wait for a vacancy to be fully contested.

[MonkeyFunk]

16. Wyoming election code

from here:

http://legisweb.state.wy.us/statutes/statutes.aspx?file=titles/Title22/Title22.htm

22-18-111. Vacancies in other offices; temporary appointments.



(a) Any vacancy in any other elective office in the state except representative in congress or the board of trustees of a school or community college district, shall be filled by the governing body, or as otherwise provided in this section, by appointment of a temporary successor to serve until a successor for the remainder of the unexpired term is elected at the next general election and takes office on the first Monday of the following January. If a vacancy in a four (4) year term of office occurs after the first day for filing an application for nomination pursuant to W.S. 22-5-209, the temporary successor appointed shall serve until the first Monday in January following the second general election thereafter.

[DURHAM D]

19. Well darn. Thanks. eom

[fishwax]

18. here's how it happened the last time a WY senator died "in office"

After the 1960 election, the republican senator elect (Keith Thompson) died before taking office. The democratic governor resigned upon being appointed interim senator (I'm not sure if he appointed himself or if his democratic replacement after he resigned appointed him) and there was a "special election" correlating with the next general election in 1962. (Incidentally, Milward Simpson who would later be elected governor and whose son Alan would later be elected to his own senate seat, won the '62 "special election," and so served out the remainder of Keith Thompson's term.

In Wyoming, the congressional seat is a statewide election, and in '06 it was a VERY close race between Jon Tester and the unpopular Barbara Cubin. I think the dems just might have a chance in '08--thomas got his senate seat after serving as the state-wide rep, but I don't think cubin can make that leap. In another state-wide race against tester, where she didn't have the advantages of the incumbent, I don't think she'd beat him.

It will be interesting to see which three repubs the party submits to the governor's approval, and also interesting to see who winds up running in the '08 election. Freudenthal was re-elected (by a significant margin) in '06, but I'm not sure he'll resign to run for the seat, particularly since it will be open again in '12, only two years after this gubernatorial term will end.

It looks like both of Wyoming's senate seats will be open in '08, as Mike Enzi is up for re-election at the time as well.

[Bitwit1234]

5. See the difference in Democrat and Republican governors

When Senator Johnson had that blood clot and was operated on, the republicans were high fiving that the South Dakota republican governor would appoint a republican to take his place.

Now the Democratic governor or Wy is going to appoint a republican to take his place. CLASS AND CHARACTER...difference between dems and repub.

[CK_John]

7. By WY state law he has no choice.

[MonkeyFunk]

9. Nonsense

state law requires him to appoint one person from a list of three provided by the party of the "incumbent".

Given the chance, I'm sure he would appoint a democrat.

[CK_John]

10. That is a lot of nonsense!!! He has no choice but to appoint a rep because Thomas was not a dem and

I believe the Sect of State is wrong.

[MonkeyFunk]

11. Wrong about what?

[CK_John]

12. I've been wrong before. Also, I thought Paris H would flee to Paris.

[MonkeyFunk]

13. I'm asking what the

Secretary of state is wrong about. I didn't understand your post.