Manchin sets timeline on run for governor

Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.V.) says he’ll make up his mind by this summer on whether he intends to complete his term in the Senate or return to West Virginia and run for governor.

“I’ll make a decision by this summer, end of the spring,” he told The Associated Press.

Manchin, a centrist Democrat from a red state, has been vocal about his frustrations with gridlock on Capitol Hill and the leadership in his own party. His term expires in 2018, but he has expressed interest in running for his old job as governor, a post he held from 2005 to 2010.

“I didn’t come here to sit on my hands,” Manchin told the AP. “The last four years are the most unproductive years of my working life.”

The Hill reported earlier this year that Manchin gave generously to West Virginia state officials from his campaign account in 2014, potentially laying the groundwork for a return.

Democrats would have a difficult time holding Manchin’s seat if he were to leave Congress. Sen. Shelley Moore Capito (R-W.V.) crushed her Democratic opponent in 2014 by nearly 30 percentage points, and it’s been almost 20 years since West Virginia voted for a Democratic presidential candidate.