Ever since 2004, Massachusetts law has provided that Governors may not fill a vacancy in a U.S. Senate seat. Instead, the seat must remain empty until a special election is held. That election must be approximately five months after the vacancy had been created.
In January 2009, Massachusetts State House member Robert Koczera introduced HB 656, to permit the Governor to fill the vacancy immediately, although the state would still hold a special election approximately five months later. The bill had been set for a legislative hearing in October 2009, but the legislature may expedite that hearing, given the recent vacancy created by the death of Senator Ted Kennedy.
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