VA senator resigns leaves state senate 1 vote short of control.

how safe is this seat? can we keep the GOP from gaining control of the senate as well?

http://www.tricities.com/news/article_bf07b134-ef60-11e3-bf7b-0017a43b2370.html

RICHMOND, Va. – State Sen. Phillip P. Puckett- D-Russell has resigned his seat, leaving Democrats one vote shy of the majority they need to control the chamber.
Puckett's stunning resignation throws Democratic budget strategy into chaos and opening the way for Republicans to seize control of the chamber and reorganize its committees with GOP majorities, the Richmond Times Dispatch said in a report issued late Sunday.
“I am deeply disappointed by this news and the uncertainty it creates at a time when 400,000 Virginians are waiting for access to quality health care, especially those in Southwest Virginia,” Gov. Terry McAuliffe said in a statement.
“This situation is unacceptable, but the bipartisan majority in the Senate and I will continue to work hard to put Virginians first and find compromise on a budget that closes the coverage gap.”
With the current fiscal year set to expire June 30, the Democrat controlled Senate and Republican controlled House of Delegates have been locked in a political stalemate over a new, two-year budget.

snip

Sources familiar with Puckett's resignation, submitted this weekend, said the longtime Southwest Virginia senator cited family reasons for his sudden departure. At least two sources speculated that one of the family reasons involved Puckett's daughter, Martha P. Ketron.
Ketron, who was admitted to the bar in October 2006, was appointed last July to serve as a judge in Juvenile and Domestic relations Court in an interim capacity by judges of the 29th District Circuit Court, which covers Buchanan, Dickenson, Russell and Tazewell counties in Southwest Virginia.
But her bid for reappointment to a full, six-year term was put off earlier this year in the General Assembly, in part due to a tradition against awarding bench appointments to family members of sitting legislators.

snip

Puckett may not be unemployed for long.
Del. Terry G. Kilgore, R-Scott, chairman of the Virginia Tobacco Indemnification and Community Revitalization Commission, said he is interested in Puckett taking a job with the commission and has discussed it with him.
"If he's available I think he'd be great for us," Kilgore said."He'd be a great asset because he knows the region, and he's a former banker and JLARC said we need more follow-up so he'd be a perfect fit for us."

more at the link x posted from the VA state area of this board.