An interesting development is happening in the state of West Virginia as Gov. Jim Justice, who won a Senate seat in the state, will make a somewhat unusual move in delaying his start date.

According to the Washington Examiner, Justice, who will replace retiring Sen. Joe Manchin, announced that he will delay his start date in Congress to ensure that he's able to complete the last 10 days of his governorship.

Gov.-elect Patrick Morrisey, a Republican and West Virginia attorney general, will replace Justice as the state's new governor.

Justice has served as the state's governor since 2017.

What did he say?

The outgoing governor and Senator-elect explained at a recent press conference why his start date will be a little bit after everyone else in the upper chamber.

"My whole thinking behind all this is the continuity of government is essential during transitions,” Justice announced Thursday ]. “Between Jan. 3 and when President Trump takes office, there’ll be some things [that] happen, but there won’t be anything happening, really, until when President Trump takes office."

Justice went on to explain that he's not interested in seeing the state have multiple temporary governors while he switches positions.

“I don’t think that there’s anything [in the Senate] that’s going to rise to the to the level of what could happen here,” Justice said.  “I don’t think that West Virginia needs to have four governors in 10 days."

The incoming senator announced his plans to the appropriate personnel in Congress, including "Sen. Shelley Moore Capito (R-WV), House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA), and incoming Senate GOP Leader John Thune (R-SD)."

WEX Wakeup: Virginia Gov. race, Democrats’ strongest defense, Jim Justice to delay Senate swearing-in.

DETAILS: https://t.co/RvUE2w7JLc pic.twitter.com/R2wtn54lJU

— Washington Examiner (@dcexaminer) December 27, 2024

Not a big deal

Justice, a longtime Trump ally and a key Senate figure who will back Trump's nominations without protest, received support from those he notified in Congress regarding his reasoning for delaying his swearing-in.

While he'll miss what's typically a hectic and busy start to the new session of Congress, his absence for the first 10 days isn't likely to affect Republican Senate business.

However, he could miss some portion of the Senate confirmation hearings that will start immediately after Congress is in session.

It doesn't look like his absence will have much of an impact, as he seems to have everyone's blessing.