Governor Deval Patrick is scheduled to make an announcement this afternoon about special election to fill the US Senate seat left vacant by the death of Senator Edward M. Kennedy. Patrick is scheduled to make the announcement in the press briefing room at the State House, according to his staff. No details were released about the substance of the announcement. [Snip] It is an election that has considerable national implications, as Democrats try to maintain a 60-seat majority in the Senate. State lawmakers are also still trying to weigh one of Kennedy's final wishes: He wanted the governor to have...