West Virginia Gov. Joe Manchin voiced support for holding a special election this year to fill the late Sen. Robert Byrd’s seat, announcing that he would request a legal opinion from the state attorney general to determine if a vote could be held. Manchin, a Democrat who said he would be “highly” interested in running for the seat himself, expressed discomfort with Secretary of State Natalie Tennant’s ruling that the governor should name a placeholder to the seat until it comes up for election in 2012.

I imagine Rahm Emanuel must be pulling his hair out — another contested Senate race, and this time, the administration can’t very well give the governor a job to get out of the race (or rather, to make sure there is no race). Republican Rep. Shelley Moore Capito would make it a real contest. If a Republican can take “Ted Kennedy’s seat,” why can’t a Republican take Byrd’s?