Vice President Joe Biden’s son, who has returned after serving a tour with the Army National Guard in Iraq, says he’ll take his time to decide whether to seek his father’s Senate seat.

The governor of Massachusetts named former Democratic Party chairman Paul G. Kirk Jr. on Thursday to temporarily fill the late Sen. Edward Kennedy’s seat, acknowledging the appointment was controversial but saying the issues before Congress were “too important to Massachusetts for us to be one voice short.“

Gov. Deval Patrick said Friday that President Barack Obama had personally talked to him about changing the Senate succession law in Massachusetts, and White House aides were pushing for him to gain the power to temporarily replace the late Sen. Edward M. Kennedy amid the administration’s health care push.

Republican Sen. Mel Martinez of Florida said Friday he will resign from the Senate as soon as a replacement can be appointed, leaving the seat more than a year before his term ends.

Al Franken became a senator on Tuesday, completing the transformation from comedian to politician.

CHICAGO—U.S. Sen. Roland Burris kept out of sight yesterday as longtime friend Gov. Pat Quinn joined the roster of fellow Democrats calling for his resignation. Burris is under pressure to quit because of new disclosures about his controversial appointment, and the White House urged the senator to take the weekend to consider his future.

Democratic Sen. Jim Webb wants the federal government to help take care of 1,200 Virginia workers who are to be laid off between now and March 2009 from Richmond-based Qimonda, a semiconductor manufacturer.

If you’re for limited government, a flat tax and getting the military out of Iraq, then William Redpath is your man. The Leesburg accountant and financial analyst is the Libertarian Party’s candidate for the U.S. Senate. In an interview, he acknowledged that few people know this. In a low-budget campaign, he has been driving his own car, relying on an unpaid campaign manager and getting free publicity when he can.

The candidate with the colorful nickname is running again. Glenda Gail “for rail” Parker is the Independent Green candidate for the U.S. Senate seat of Sen. John W. Warner, a Republican who is retiring after 30 years. In her previous run for the Senate in 2006, she fared the way most independent candidates do. Unable to raise money and get her message out, Parker got 1.2 percent of the vote.

As Virginians focused on the presidential candidates’ tenacious fight for the state, former Govs. and Senate hopefuls Jim Gilmore and Mark R. Warner also made late dashes for votes. Before Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin’s appearance last night at Deep Run High School in Henrico County, Gilmore shook hands with nearly every person who entered the football stadium to see the Republican vice-presidential nominee.

Several Republicans who served in the state legislature today endorsed former U.S. Senate hopeful Mark R. Warner at a news conference in Richmond.