Ed Markey (D. MA) will be starting his promising career as U.S. Senator next week:
http://www.telegram.com/...
Vice President Joseph Biden is expected to swear in U.S. Senator-elect Edward J. Markey next Wednesday afternoon in Washington, D.C., after the election results are certified by the Governor's Council earlier that day.
The Massachusetts secretary of state's office is expected to have the full vote count completed by then. Interim Sen. William "Mo" Cowans said today that as far as he understands the process, his five- month term as the interim senator appointed to fill John Kerry's seat, will end as soon as the vote is certified. He was sworn in as a member of the Senate Feb. 7.
Gov. Deval L Patrick, who presided over the Governors Council meeting today, asked the council to meet at 9:30 a.m. Wednesday to certify the vote and said that he understands the vice president will be available to swear in Mr. Markey in the afternoon. - Telegram, 7/3/13
The good thing is Markey won't be an unknown name in the Senate:
http://www.usatoday.com/...
Markey won't need to say, "Hi, I'm Ed," to a lot of his new colleagues because he served with a majority of them when they were House members. Markey has already served with 51 senators, according to data collected by the Senate Historical Office. Markey, 66, also goes from being fifth in seniority in the House to last in the Senate. Seniority in the Senate helps determine committee assignments — and those on the low rungs of the majority party spend a lot of time in the chair presiding over debates. - USA Today, 6/25/13
Markey will have to defend his seat again next year and he might face Gabriel Gomez again:
http://www.nytimes.com/...
Senator Jerry Moran of Kansas, the chairman of the National Republican Senatorial Committee, was upbeat, declaring that Mr. Gomez had forced the Democrats to spend millions to drag Mr. Markey “across the finish line in the most liberal state in the country.”
And he all but announced that Mr. Gomez would challenge Mr. Markey in November 2014, when Mr. Markey will have to defend the seat for a full six-year term. “Today marks the end of the first mile in the marathon to permanently fill the Massachusetts Senate seat,” Mr. Moran said. “Gabriel Gomez is well prepared to win that marathon over the next 16 months.” - New York Times, 6/25/13
Whatever happens, we will be ready. I'm looking forward to having Markey in the U.S. Senate. He's a true blue progressive and we need more of them in the Senate. Thank you for helping Markey win last week!