AS EXPECTED

Pete Ricketts to Be Nebraska’s Next Senator, Replacing Ben Sasse

Ricketts enters the role just one week after exiting his second full term as governor.

Nebraska Gov. Jim Pillen announced on Thursday that he would tap the state’s former governor to fill its recently vacated Senate seat. Republican Pete Ricketts will be temporarily taking the spot, replacing Sen. Ben Sasse, who resigned Jan. 3 to become president of the University of Florida. The 58-year-old enters the role just one week after exiting his second full gubernatorial term. There was little doubt that Ricketts would get the job if he wanted it, according to the Nebraska Examiner, bringing the most experience to the seat while riding the tailwinds of spending some $1.3 million to help Sasse enter office. If Ricketts wants to keep the job, he’ll have to run in a special election being held in 2024 that will determine the future of the seat. But the campaigning won’t end there—the former governor will have to run again, just two years later, in 2026 to win a full term.