Alabama Gov. Robert Bentley has appointed state Attorney General Luther Strange to replace Jeff Sessions in the Senate, after Sessions was confirmed to be President Trump’s attorney general.
“I am greatly honored and humbled to accept the appointment to Alabama’s Senate seat vacated by Senator Jeff Sessions,” Strange said. “Senator Sessions’ commitment to public service is nearly unparalleled in Alabama history and his departure from the Senate leaves tremendous shoes to fill.”
“I pledge to the people of Alabama to continue the same level of leadership as Jeff Sessions in consistently fighting to protect and advance the conservative values we all care about,” he said.
Strange was widely expected to be picked to take Sessions’ seat in the U.S. Senate.
The Senate is expected to swear Strange in at 2 p.m. Thursday.
Gov. Bentley said Alabama was “well represented” by Sessions, and said Strange would also “serve as a fine representative for our people.”
Bentley will likely be criticized for picking Strange because of his own political and legal problems. Strange had been in the process of deciding whether to launch an investigation into Bentley’s relationship with a top political aide and his potential misuse of state funds.
The state legislature suspended impeachment proceedings against Bentley at the request of Strange, who said it might overlap with his own probe.
