It's highly unlikely that Gov. Ed Rendell will ever have the chance the fill a vacant U.S. Senate seat before he leaves office in two years. But that doesn't mean he supports state Rep. Eugene DePasquale's proposed legislation to strip the governor of that power altogether.

"We believe that the Representative's proposal is a solution in search of a problem," Rendell spokesman Chuck Ardo told PolitickerPA.com Thursday.

DePasquale plans to introduce a bill this month that would require a special election within 120 days of any Senate vacancy. The scandal over President-elect Barack Obama's vacant seat in Illinois, DePasquale said, "highlights some of the potential mischief that can go on."

"The Senator represents the people, and therefore the people should send that person to Washington," DePasquale said in an interview earlier Thursday.

Ardo said that such a bill, for which DePasquale is just starting to seek cosponsors, seems unnecessary.

"The governor has made numerous appointments over the years without any controversy, and we believe that if the need arose, he would make such an appointment again," Ardo said.

Ardo said he was unsure whether Rendell would sign such a bill if it came to his desk.

"[The governor] would have to see the specifics of any legislation before signing, but he is skeptical that such legislation is necessary," Ardo said.