Former Nebraska Gov. After Ben Sasse left the Senate in order to become the president of the University of Florida, Pete Ricketts was elected to replace him.

From 2015 to last week, Ricketts was Nebraska’s governor. He was then replaced by Republican Governor. Jim Pillen. Ricketts was prevented from running for a third term by Nebraska term limits.

Pillen, Ricketts’ endorser, announced Ricketts’ appointment to the vacant Senate seat on Thursday. He stated that Ricketts was among nine candidates who applied for the position.

Pillen stated that his job was to find the best representative for Nebraska. According to the Nebraska Examiner, Pillen also said that he is proud of the outcome.

According to the Washington Post, Ricketts stated that he would run for Senate in 2024 in order to fill the two remaining years of Sasse’s term. He will also run again in 2026 for a full 6-year term.

After Sasse’s announcement that he would be stepping down, it was known that Ricketts wanted the job. Senator Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) backed Ricketts in October and called him a “great choice for the job”.

Ricketts is the son of Joe Ricketts (the billionaire founder and CEO of TD Ameritrade), who was raised in a wealthy midwestern family. His family also owns the majority of Chicago Cubs’ baseball team. Pete Ricketts was a former employee of Ameritrade before he ran for governor.