Governor Joe Manchin (D) has announced that he will appoint Carte Goodwin, his former chief counsel, to fill the United States Senate seat vacated by the death of Senator Robert Byrd (D-WV).

Goodwin, supposedly the member of another influential West Virginia family, will be sworn-in later today. He will hold the seat until November, when Manchin wants to hold a special election.

It’s very likely that Manchin himself will seek the seat in November.