The full Senate is expected to take up Kerry’s confirmation later Tuesday. Kerry confirmed as secretary of State

Sen. John Kerry was easily confirmed by the Senate Tuesday to become the next secretary of state, installing the first key member of President Barack Obama’s national security team in his second term.

The vote was 94-3, with Kerry voting present. Jim Inhofe (R-Okla.) and Texas Republicans John Cornyn and Ted Cruz voted no.


The swift confirmation was expected; the longtime Massachusetts senator and 2004 Democratic presidential nominee has won plaudits from both Democrats and Republicans, and fellow senators had given no indication that Kerry’s confirmation would be a problem. Earlier Tuesday, the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, which Kerry has chaired, also unanimously advanced his nomination.

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Kerry entered the Senate chamber shortly before 4:30 p.m. as his colleagues were voting on his confirmation. He was immediately greeted with handshakes and hugs from one colleague after another, and once the final vote tally was announced, the chamber broke out in a sustained applause.

Kerry was nominated by Obama in December to replace outgoing Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.

“John has earned the respect of leaders around the world and the confidence of Democrats and Republicans in the Senate, and I am confident he will make an extraordinary secretary of state,” Obama said in a statement Tuesday. “I look forward to his counsel and partnership in the years ahead as we ensure American leadership in the world and advance the interests and values that keep our nation strong.”

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His ascendance to be the nation’s chief diplomat was expected, particularly after another top choice to become secretary of state — Susan Rice, the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations — withdrew from consideration following the controversy over her characterizations of the Sept. 11, 2012 attacks in Benghazi, Libya.

“We’re so proud of John,” Sen. Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) told reporters. “This is a great way to take his public career to a new level. He is certainly capable of this job, and as chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, we all know well how he deals with diplomatic challenges. He’s going to be a great secretary of state.”

Still, the veteran senator ran into some opposition. A spokesman for Cornyn said he voted no because Kerry “has a long history of liberal positions that are not consistent with a majority of Texans.”

“After listening to the nomination hearing, Sen. Cornyn could not support Sen. Kerry’s nomination,” spokesman Drew Brandewie said.

Cruz, a fellow Texan, said Kerry had a “longstanding less-than-vigorous defense of U.S. national security issues” and criticized the Massachusetts senator for backing treaties and international tribunals that Cruz said undermined the United States.

“Now that he has been confirmed, I look forward to working with him in the years to come, hopefully, to protect our interests and preserve U.S. sovereignty,” Cruz said in a statement.

The 69-year-old Kerry, a veteran of the Vietnam War, has deep roots in foreign service. His father, Richard, was a Foreign Service officer, and Kerry noted at his confirmation hearing last week that the Senate Foreign Relations Committee was the only major panel he has been on since he began his Senate tenure in 1985. Kerry has been the committee’s chairman since 2009.

“My father’s work under presidents, both Democratic and Republican, took me and my siblings around the world for a personal journey that brought home the sacrifices and the commitment the men and women of the foreign service make every day on behalf of America,” Kerry said last week.

Kerry’s confirmation will trigger a special election for his Senate seat. Massachusetts officials said Monday that the primaries will be held April 30, and the general election will be June 25. Democratic Rep. Ed Markey has already announced he will run, and former Sen. Scott Brown is a top contender on the Republican side. Democratic Rep. Stephen Lynch is also weighing a bid.

In the interim, Massachusetts Gov. Deval Patrick is expected to announce Kerry’s temporary replacement on Wednesday. Former Rep. Barney Frank (D-Mass.) has said he would like to be appointed to the seat.

Sen. Robert Menendez (D-N.J.) is set to take over as chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.

“A decorated Vietnam combat veteran, dedicated public service with deep experience in international affairs and close relationships with presidents and prime ministers throughout the world, he will have an extraordinary beginning to his job as the secretary of state,” Menendez said on the Senate floor shortly before the vote.

Kerry’s new position is part of the remake of Obama’s national security team in the president’s second term. Obama has also chosen former Sen. Chuck Hagel (R-Neb.), whose confirmation hearing is scheduled for later this week, as Defense secretary, and John Brennan to become the next director of the Central Intelligence Agency. Brennan’s confirmation hearing is expected in February. Those nominations are likely to run into more resistance in the Senate.