Republican Senator Ben Sasse To Resign, Report Says

U.S. Sen. Ben Sasse (R-NE) is reportedly going to resign from his position to pursue a new opportunity outside of elected office.

NewsRadio 1110 KFAB’s Ian Swanson, a former staffer for Sasse, broke the news, saying that Sasse was going to pursue an opportunity in higher education, adding that the resignation was not expected to happen immediately.

“[Senator Sasse] will imminently announce his intent to resign from the U.S. Senate to pursue another opportunity in higher education,” Swanson wrote on Twitter. “While the process could take a bit, the announcements are expected ‘imminently.'”

“I want to be clear here: this is a process that will take time, so the resignation will not take effect today,” he added. “The process will be announced today, and I am told to expect the resignation to actually be made official in December.”

Aaron Sanderford, a reporter with the Nebraska Examiner, reported that if Sasse does indeed resign that his seat would be filled by gubernatorial appointment.

“His replacement would serve from now until early 2025,” Sanderson said. “That would mean Nebraska could have both Senate seats up in the same presidential election year, 2024.”

If Sasse's staff confirms a resignation, his spot would have to be filled by gubernatorial appointment. His replacement would serve from now until early 2025. That would mean Nebraska could have both Senate seats up in the same presidential election year, 2024.

— Aaron Sanderford (@asanderford) October 6, 2022

Shortly after the news broke of Sasse’s forthcoming retirement, the senator revealed that he will become the next president at the University of Florida.

“The University of Florida is uniquely positioned to lead this country through an era of disruption,” Sasse said in a statement. “The single biggest challenge our nation faces is the radical disruption of work. Technology is changing everything about where, when, why, what, and how Americans work and so it’s changing our homes, neighborhoods, and communities too.”

Sasse said that he has been courted by top universities over the last couple of years, but that he and his wife had resisted attempts to lure him out of the Senate.

Sasse said this time was different though because he views the University of Florida as “the most interesting university in America right now.”

“Melissa and I have been pursued by wonderful institutions the past two years, but we’ve resisted being named a finalist,” Sasse said. “This time is different because the University of Florida is very different: I think Florida is the most interesting university in America right now.”

The University of Florida said in a statement that they spent months carefully vetting hundreds of applicants for the role and that the school’s 15-member presidential search committee “unanimously recommended United States Senator Dr. Ben Sasse as the sole finalist to become the University of Florida’s 13th president.”

“Dr. Sasse currently serves as a U.S. Senator from Nebraska and is a former college president, highly accomplished scholar and nationally recognized authority on higher education,” the school said.

This report has been updated to include additional information.