20 January 2009: Senator Ken Salazar, who was first elected in 2004, will resign his Senate seat tomorrow in order to become Secretary of the Interior in the Obama Administration. He was confirmed by the U.S. Senate viva voce (by voice vote).

22 January 2009: Colorado Governor Bill Ritter's nominee, Denver Public Schools Superintendent Michael Bennet (Democratic), is sworn.

24 November 2008: Governor Ruth Ann Minner (D-Delaware) announced that she would appoint Ted Kaufman, a long-time aide to Senator (now Vice President-elect) Joseph Biden, to the seat Biden will have to vacate prior to Noon Eastern Time next 20 January, when he is scheduled to be sworn in as Vice-President of the United States. Senator Biden won re-election to his seat (as well as the Vice-Presidency) in the 4 November Elections; Kaufman would be appointed to serve until a successor is chosen by the People of the State of Delaware in a Special Election in November 2010.

9 January 2009: Vice President-elect Biden will resign his Senate Seat effective at 5 PM Eastern Time (2000 UTC) on Thursday 15 January 2009.

15 January 2009: Vice President-elect Joseph R. Biden is resigning his Senate seat (to which he had been re-elected in the 4 November 2008 election) today; his long-time aide- Ted Kaufman (Democrat), appointed by Delaware's Governor as Biden's temporary replacement (pending a Special Election in November 2010)- is to be formally sworn in 16 January 2009. This change has no effect on the political breakdown of the U.S. Senate in the 111th Congress. Senator Biden was first elected in 1972; and re-elected in 1978, 1984, 1990, 1996, 2002, and 2008.

Senator Barack Obama, who was first elected in 2004, was elected to the Presidency 4 November 2008. On 15 November 2008, President-elect Obama announced his resignation from the Senate, effective on 16 November 2008.

Tuesday 30 December 2008: Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich (Democrat) has announced he will appoint Roland W. Burris (Democrat), a former state Comptroller and Attorney General of the State of Illinois, to fill the U.S. Senate Class 3 seat vacated by President-elect Barack Obama. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nevada) and Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-Illinois) have issued a joint statement stating they will block the appointment.

The most desirable dates for a possible Special Election to fill the Class 3 U.S. Senate seat from Illinois are 24 February 2009 for a Special Senate Primary and 7 April 2009 for the Special Senate Election itself, as these would coincide with local and municipal elections in the State-- however, this would require the new 96th Illinois General Assembly to pass enabling legislation (approved by the Governor or, if necessary, overriding his veto) which is highly unlikely to be adopted prior to these dates (thus, these are labeled as 'tentative' on this website)-- if Governor Blagojevich is either removed from office via impeachment (highly unlikely before these dates) or should he resign, this would all become a moot point as Lieutenant Governor Pat Quinn would, in each such case, thereafter accede to the office of Governor and retain the statutory power to appoint a temporary successor (one presumably untainted by the current allegations against the Governor).
NOTE: the eventual seating of Senator Burris on 15 January 2009 rendered such consideration of a possible Special Election to fill this vacancy moot.

On 5 January 2009, the Secretary of the U.S. Senate rejected the filing of a Certificate of Appointment on behalf of Mr. Burris because said certificate was not signed by both the Illinois Governor and the Illinois Secretary of State.

9 January 2009 update: The ILLINOIS Supreme Court ruled today that the appointment of Roland W. Burris by Governor Blagojevich to fill the vacancy in this seat caused by the resignation of President-elect Barack Obama this past November is valid even without the attestation of Illinois' Secretary of State (who has yet to so countersign Mr. Burris' Certificate of Appointment): the court ruled that the power granted to the States- per the 17th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution- to allow for the temporary filling of U.S. Senate vacancies by their respective Governors where permitted by State law supersedes any rules, customs or traditions of the Senate itself requiring more than mere appointment by the Governor (in essence, then, the court interpreted the term "executive" of the State as found in the 17th Amendment to refer to a State's Governor only and not to any other officials who might otherwise be considered to be part of a State's Executive branch of Government in relation to the act of Appointment [such as a State's Secretary of State or equivalent). The Democratic Party leadership of the U.S. Senate is reported to be going over this ruling as part and parcel of considering what steps to take next as regards the possible seating (or not) of Mr. Burris as the junior Senator from the State.

15 January 2009: Roland W. Burris, appointed by embattled Governor Rod Blagojevich to temporarily fill the vacancy in this seat caused by the resignation of President-elect Barack H. Obama in mid-November 2008, is to be sworn in today.

On 25 August 2009, Senator Kennedy passed away from brain cancer at the age of 77.

Senator Edward Moore "Ted" Kennedy was first elected to finish out the term in a Special Election in 1962 [held to fill the vacancy caused by the resignation of Senator John F. Kennedy (Democrat) on 22 December 1960- which Benjamin A. Smith II (Democrat) had been appointed by Governor Foster Furcolo (Democrat) to fill, 27 December 1960]; he was elected to first full term in 1964; and re-elected in 1970, 1976, 1982, 1988, 1994, 2000, and 2006.

Upon the passing of Senator Kennedy, MASSACHUSETTS State law did not permit the Governor of the Commonwealth to appoint an interim successor when a vacancy in the United States Senate has occurred; instead, a Special Election for the remainder of the current term (the Class 1 seat would otherwise next be up for election in November 2012 and, therefore, the current term ends at Noon Eastern Standard Time on 3 January 2013) must be held no sooner than 145 days and no later than 160 days after a vacancy has occurred.

On 23 September 2009, the General Court (state Legislature) changed the law to allow the Governor to appoint a temporary Senator who would serve until the Special Election.

7 July 2009: Senator Al Franken is sworn in as Senator.

30 June 2009: Minnesota Supreme Court declares Democrat Al Franken the winner of the November 2008 US Senate contest. Norm Coleman to concede in Minnesota Senate dispute. Media reports indicate that now-former US Senator Norm Coleman (R-Minnesota) will concede, thus paving the way for Al Franken- the Democratic victor of the 2008 Election to the Class 2 seat from that State to be seated in the United States Senate.

Contested 4 November 2008 election: Al Franken (Democratic-Farmer Labor, 41.99%), Norm Coleman (Republican, 41.98%).

Winner of election to be determined (Technically, this seat is not actually "vacant"-- at least not in the ordinary sense of the term: for someone [either Mr. COLEMAN or Mr. FRANKEN] had already been elected via the voting results from 4 November 2008 to this seat for the term already begun 3 January 2009: it's just that we just don't yet know who officially, even though Mr. Franken has been formally certified the victor by State election authorities, pending the outcome of Mr. Coleman's contesting this certification-- only the U.S. Senate itself, under its constitutional authority to be the Judge of the Elections, Returns and Qualifications of its own Members [US Const.: Art. I, Sec. 5, clause 1], can refuse to seat either candidate and thereby declare the seat officially vacant, necessitating an eventual Special Election to fill the resultant vacancy: unless and until the Senate does so, this seat is better described as having been "suspended").

U.S. Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton was nominated for Secretary of State on 1 December 2008 and confirmed on 21 January 2009 with a Senate Roll Call vote of 94-2. Immediately after the Confirmation, she resigned her seat. The New York Governor named a replacement candidate, Congressman Kirsten E. Gillibrand, on 23 January 2009. Senator Gillibrand was a Representative in Congress from NEW YORK's 20th Congressional District prior to her appointment to this seat. Senator Gillibrand (pronounced "JIH-lih-brand") was sworn in on 27 January 2009.