Ben Sasse resigns from U.S. Senate


Ben Sasse (R) resigned from the U.S. Senate on Jan. 8 to become the University of Florida’s 13th president.

Prior to joining the U.S. Senate in 2015, Sasse served as president of Midland University. He most recently ran for re-election in 2020, winning with 62.7% of the vote.

Nebraska is one of 37 states where vacancies are temporarily filled by gubernatorial appointment. A special election is then held coinciding with the next regularly scheduled election to replace the appointee. 

As of Jan. 8, there has been one vacancy in the U.S. Senate. With Sasse’s resignation, there are 48 Democrats and Republicans, three independents (two of which caucus with Democrats), and one vacancy. 

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