Election 2010: Candidate Field in Flux (Updated)

Secretary of State Natalie Tennant counted 394 candidates filing with her office by Saturday's midnight deadline.

As The Associated Press reports, slightly more than a dozen braved the weekend snow to add their names on the final day (county clerks received filings as well for offices on that part of the ballot).

But the deadline also applied to postmarked filings, which won't arrive at the Capitol until this week.

State Sen. Mike Oliverio, D-Monongalia, told The Intelligencer of Wheeling (but not, at first glance, his hometown newspaper), "that he had mailed in his certificate of candidacy papers for congress," with plans to challenge 1st District U.S. Rep. Alan Mollohan in their party's primary.

Oliverio has planned a multi-stop media tour to kick off his campaign, including an appearance on MetroNews' Talkline. (Update: Audio here, while AP has an item as well.)

That show also expects to hear from ex-Supreme Court Justice Elliott "Spike" Maynard. Having recently defected to the Republican Party, MetroNews expects he'll announce a run against Rep. Nick Rahall, D-3rd. (Update: MetroNews has item plus audio. AP has coverage as well.)

The State Journal, meanwhile, reports that former Morgantown Mayor Ron Justice has mailed in papers to vie for the state Senate seat that Oliverio is vacating.