Cable news channels are announcing that John Murtha, D-PA, age 77, died of complication from gallbladder surgery.
Who will take his seat?
UPDATE
Wall Street Journal notice.
The death of longtime Pennsylvania Rep. John Murtha (D) this afternoon will set off a special election in his very competitive western Pennsylvania 12th district.
According to state law, the governor has ten days once the vacancy is officially declared to decide on the date for the special election, which can come no sooner than 60 days following that proclamation.
That likely means the special election will be held on May 18, which is the date already set for federal primaries around the state. (Special elections costs the state huge sums of money and it’s likely that Gov. Ed Rendell will choose to go with an already established election day to save some cash.)
The Voters Of PA-12 Will Choose A New Representative Through A Special Election
In other words, there will be a couple more opportunities for voters to affect the composition of a House already narrowly divided on President Obama’s signature issue, and for now, at least, there are no longer the votes to pass anything unless and until Nancy Pelosi turns some “no” votes into “yes” votes without losing more of the original “yes” votes.
