It’s similar to what happened in Missouri with Mel Carnahan, except he was just a candidate, not the Senator.

I don’t know what Minnesota law is in comparison, but I’d guess he stays on the ballot, and if he wins, then Ventura will appoint another Senator (presumably a Democrat, though there’s no requirement for that). In theory, Ventura could appoint a replacement before the election, but I doubt if he’d bother, since it might become moot if the Republican wins. Whoever he appointed would only be Senator until January in that case.

On the other hand, it might be good for him to make the appointment now, because that would make the upcoming election a special election, in which case the Republican would take office on election day, just as Talent will in Missouri if he wins.

On the other other hand, maybe Ventura has to appoint someone ASAP, to fill the seat and maintain Minnesota’s representation in the Senate, particularly since they’re going to have to go back into session after the election for unfinished business.

My fear is that this is bad news for the Republicans, because the people of Minnesota might actually be more inclined to vote for a generic Democrat than they were for Wellstone.

[Updated thought, a few minutes later]

Will Ventura appoint himself?

[Another update at 2 PM PDT]

Now the rumor is that Mondale is in the running to replace Wellstone on the ballot. Like New Jersey, they’re replacing another non-viable candidate with a geezer.

As one wag on Free Republic put it, they’re passing the torch on to an old generation…