In a decision that could add some complexity to the jostling for the special election for the D.C. Council Chair, the D.C. Board of Elections and Ethics said today that candidates are free to run in both the regularly scheduled November election and the special election that will likely fall on the same day.

While D.C. law prohibits running for two seats in the same election, the board’s general counsel found that the general election and the special election are wholly separate contests, meaning that running in both is OK. “General Counsel’s legal opinion is that they are separate elections, even if held on the same day. The Board’s discretion to schedule the date of a special election does not affect candidates’ eligibility to run for the office,” wrote board spokeswoman Alysoun McLaughlin in an email.

Even though Brown’s resignation kickstarts a process that would result in an election by October, the D.C. Charter allows the board the flexibility to schedule it on the same day as another planned election, provided they are within 60 days of each other. That would be November 6.

Why does this matter? Because a number of sitting councilmembers—including Michael Brown (I-At Large) and Vincent Orange (D-At Large)—are up for re-election this November, but could now potentially run for the seat vacated yesterday by former D.C. Council Chair Kwame Brown at the same time.

While Councilmember Phil Mendelson (D-At Large) has been pinned as the favorite to be selected to fill Brown’s seat until the special (he’s also said he’d like to run to finish out Brown’s term), today’s decision might push Orange into running for the seat he’s always wanted. He ran for it in 2010 against Brown, after all.

Running two campaigns for any candidate would be a logistical nightmare, though, not to mention the fact that if a sitting councilmember won, another special election would have to be held for their seat. (And what if a candidate won both seats? Oh my.) Still, it could be a safe bet for Orange, who is running as the Democratic nominee for his At-Large seat in November.