The state of West Virginia will hold a special primary election Saturday to determine the candidates to fill the seat of deceased Sen. Robert C. Byrd.
Most expect Gov. Joe Manchin to carry the Democratic primary in a landslide, which is highly likely and unfortunate.
Since the late senator's death, it has been presumed that Manchin would ultimately fill the seat vacated by Byrd.
Manchin declined to use his executive powers to appoint himself to Byrd's office, avoiding potential legal issues, negative press and backlash when he finally went before West Virginia voters in 2012.
It's long been known that Manchin's dream was to become senator. In petitioning for a special election, Manchin was able to give the impression that he cared about something other than his own political career.
There is, however, one candidate who does. Ken Hechler, former Secretary of State, truly cares for the people of West Virginia. He's had a selfless record of service for the state and the nation.
And now, after initially indicating he had no plans of defeating Manchin, Hechler seems to be changing his tune.
"Politics is a very strange business to project," Hechler told the editorial board of The Daily Athenaeum. "Polls go wrong. (President Harry Truman) said polls might be a snapshot of temporary public opinion, but they don't tell the difference between justice and injustice."
The injustice, according to Hechler, would be to allow Manchin to run virtually unopposed.
While the abolition of mountaintop removal may be Hechler's issue of choice, he is trying to provide Manchin with healthy competition.
"Nobody else had dared to step forward and challenge Gov. Manchin," Hechler said. "It was left for me to do so."
Hechler won't win Saturday's election. And this is in no way an endorsement for the aging former U.S. House Representative.
In fact, replacing a 92-year-old senator with a 95-year-old senator would undoubtedly cause more than a few eyes to roll around the nation.
(Though, questions regarding his functional capacity were quickly laid to rest before our meeting with Hechler even began.)
But the governor shouldn't waltz his way to Washington on an unencumbered path, forgetting bipartisanship and working only in his best interest and in the best interest of the coal industry. And, as Hechler believes, favoring the coal industry over the people of West Virginia.
"Manchin seems to believe that this office belongs to him," Hechler claims. "He says he listens, but he doesn't do anything."
Despite Hechler's best efforts and what will most likely be a pedestrian effort by Morgantown business mogul John Raese, the governor will almost certainly become West Virginia's next senator.
We can only hope that in 2012, he has a legitimate challenger.
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