LINCOLN — Nebraska Gov. Jim Pillen made the expected choice Thursday, appointing his predecessor, Pete Ricketts, to the U.S. Senate.

Ricketts, who finished his second term as governor last week, fills the seat that Sen. Ben Sasse, R-Neb., vacated Sunday to lead the University of Florida.

“My job … was to find the best person to represent us, and the process for me has been really, really important,” Pillen said in making the announcement in the Capitol Rotunda.

Ricketts thanked Pillen and said he was grateful for the “unexpected opportunity. … I am humbled and grateful for the opportunity that Gov.Pillen has given me.”

He told those gathered in the Rotiunda, “I often say Nebraska is what America is supposed to be, and it’s never been truer at any point in our history.”

Ricketts was the most experienced applicant for the job, based on reporting by the Nebraska Examiner in recent weeks. But the list also included other well-known names.

Among them: former State Sen. Brett Lindstrom, Pinnacle Bank Chairman Sid Dinsdale, Nebraska Chamber of Commerce President Bryan Slone and lawyer Ann Ashford.

Pillen said he interviewed nine candidates during the selection process.

“We took this process incredibly seriously,” Pillen said. “The criteria for me were really, really simple. The appointee needs to represent us as a people.”

He said the person selected needs to have a “servant heart,” to be there for future generations and to push for accountability and less government.

Pillen has praised Ricketts’ record of cutting taxes and controlling spending. Ricketts weighed in more often on national issues during his second term, including on immigration enforcement.

Ricketts faced troubles with crowding and staffing at state prisons and had to pull child welfare services in the Omaha area back under state control after a contractor chosen by his administration flopped.

He becomes the latest Nebraskan to serve in the Senate after being governor, most recently including Republican Mike Johanns and Democrats Ben Nelson, Bob Kerrey and J.J. Exon.

Ricketts on Thursday credited Sasse for his service, including his efforts to help to get conservative judges confirmed. He said he looks forward to working with and learning from Sen. Deb Fischer, R-Neb.

“We all know that Pete is a quick learner,” Fischer said Thursday at the State Capitol announcement. “He will work hard for this state, so I look forward to partnering with him in the future … to build a stronger Nebraska and to build a stronger and more secure nation.”

Political consultants considered Ricketts the odds-on favorite to get the job. Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell and Sen. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina both backed him.

U.S. Reps. Don Bacon, Mike Flood and Adrian Smith have all said Ricketts would make a strong senator.

Many state legislators backed by Ricketts over the years also have voiced support, including State Sen. Lou Ann Linehan of Omaha.

Ricketts critics, including Nebraska Democratic Party chair Jane Kleeb, said this week that it was clear Pillen would pick Ricketts because he was Pillen’s top political patron.

Kleeb said Pillen would be paying back Ricketts for his help in the governor’s race. She said Nebraskans “deserve a senator who will work for them, not someone who buys elections as a hobby.”

Ricketts spent more than $1.3 million during the 2022 election to help elect Pillen, including contributions to outside groups that bashed Pillen’s top opponents during the pivotal GOP primary.

Some of the Republicans who wrested control of the state party away from Ricketts last summer said anger from rank-and-file activists stemmed from Ricketts taking sides in primaries.

Several privately backed the application of Republican John Glen Weaver, who lost a primary bid last year for the 1st Congressional District.

When Ricketts announced his interest in the Senate post in December, he dismissed conspiracy talk as misguided. He said that in applying for the job he would make the case that he was the best person for the job.

Pillen agreed. He has told the Nebraska Examiner in recent interviews that he intended to choose a conservative for the role who reflects the will of Nebraskans.

Ricketts said Thursday that his administration’s work during his time as governor has made government work better for the people of the state.

“In all those ways, we showed how government can work. I want to bring that to Washington, D.C.,” he said.  “We need to hold Washington, D.C., accountable.”

He repeated his often-stated philosophy that government needs to run more like a business and stressed the need for a strong national defense.

Ricketts’ seat will be open to election again in 2024, the same year Fischer is up for re-election. That would be Ricketts’ second run for the Senate. He lost his first bid in 2006, when he was a political novice, running against incumbent Nelson.

That was the last time a Republican has lost a statewide race in Nebraska.

Political consultants in the Midwest are already gearing up for the possibility of a primary challenger to either Ricketts or Fischer, who has confirmed she is running for a third term.

The new leaders of the state GOP have expressed more openness to the idea of primary challengers to Republican incumbents than previous leadership. The Ricketts-led GOP team got involved more often in open-seat primaries.

Among those rumored as interested in a possible Senate bid is agribusinessman Charles Herbster, who finished second to Pillen in the 2022 GOP primary for governor. 

This story was originally published by Nebraska Examiner, an editorially independent newsroom providing a hard-hitting, daily flow of news. It is part of the national nonprofit States Newsroom. Find more at nebraskaexaminer.com.