Yesterday morning, Massachusetts Governor Deval Patrick named William “Mo” Cowan as John Kerry’s temporary successor in the U.S. Senate, after Kerry was confirmed as Secretary of State in a 94-3 vote. Cowan, Patrick’s former Chief of Staff, is an attorney who resides in Stoughton, MA. He will serve in Kerry’s seat until the special election in June. With the appointment of Mo Cowan there will now be two African American U.S. Senators serving together for the first time in American history.

Kerry’s resignation from the Senate will be effective February 1 at 4 pm. The special election to fill his seat will be held on June 25th (primary on April 30th). The winner will serve the remainder of Kerry’s term, through January 2015. The 2014 Senate election will be for a full six year term.

When Senator Kerry resigns on Friday, Massachusetts will lose the seniority it has held in the Senate for decades. Kerry was the seventh most senior member and Ted Kennedy, before he passed away, was the second most senior member. Elizabeth Warren, the newly elected Massachusetts Senator has been in office less than a month.

Monday, January 28 at noon, was the filing deadline for those wanting to run for the vacant South Carolina 1st congressional district seat.  The seat became available when Governor Nikki Haley (R) appointed former representative Tim Scott (R) to the United States Senate.  Former senator Jim DeMint (R) resigned from the Senate after his appointment to become President of The Heritage Foundation.

The candidate list consists of 16 Republicans and 3 Democrats.  Some notable names are former Governor Mark Sanford and comedian, Stephen Colbert’s sister.  Teddy Turner, whose father is left leaning media magnate Ted Turner, is fighting for the congressional seat not as Democrat but as a conservative Republican.

The special election primary will take place March 19, followed by the general election May 7.

Democrats
Elizabeth Colbert Busch – business-development director at Clemson University; older sister of comedian Stephen Colbert
Ben Frasier – has lost 11 out of 13 primaries he has run in; former nominee for SC-1
Martin Skelly - businessman

Republicans
Keith Blandford – Vice President/Lead Environmental Scientist for the Warrick Group; ran for SC-1 as a Libertarian in 2010 and 2012; served in the U.S. Army National Guard
Curtis Bostic – served in the U.S. Marine Corps; served on Charleston County Council for two terms
Ric Bryant – an unknown from Hanahan, SC
Larry Grooms – businessman; current State Senator
Jonathan Hoffman – small business owner; adjunct professor; U.S. Air Force reserve; former White House Director on the Homeland Security Council team
Jeff King – systems engineer for a military contractor
John Kuhn – businessman; tax attorney; former State Senator
Tim Larkin – Project Manager and Senior Systems Analyst at a Department of Defense contractor; Afghanistan War veteran
Chip Limehouse – small businessman; Charleston State Representative
Peter McCoy – Charleston State Representative; former criminal prosecutor in Solicitor Scarlett Wilson’s office
Elizabeth Moffly – businesswoman; Trustee on the Charleston County School Board; former candidate for State Superintendent of Education;
Ray Nash – recently resigned his position as the Criminal Justice Adviser for the US Embassy in Kabul; former Dorchester County Sheriff
Andy Patrick – small business owner; U.S. Air Force veteran; former Special Agent for the U.S. Secret Service
Shawn Pinkston – local attorney; former U.S. Army officer; Iraq War veteran; former military prosecutor
Mark Sanford – former Governor of South Carolina; former representative for SC-1
Teddy Turner – small business owner; high school teacher; son of media mogul Ted Turner

Although 2013 will be relatively quiet compared to the intensity and chaos of 2012, there are many events that will occur impacting policy and elections in 2014, 2015 and 2016. For an overview of moments that are flying both over and under the radar in 2013, view the graphic below. To see what’s “on the radar”, check out the dates in Blue, and to see what’s “under the radar” see the dates in Red.

Barack Obama, the 44th President of the United States was officially sworn into his second term this past Sunday, taking the oath of office in the Blue Room at the White House. While the 57th Presidential Inauguration took place on Monday, January 21st, the 20th Amendment to the Constitution requires that the President officially be sworn in on January 20that noon. President Obama took the oath of office two times this year, making him the only president besides Franklin Roosevelt to have taken the oath of office four times. In 2009, Chief Justice John Roberts botched the oath during the Inauguration, and re-administered it the following day. In Roosevelt’s case, he took the oath after being elected four separate times.

Besides the Constitution’s requirement to take the oath on January 20th at noon, it says little else about the inauguration. The only other requirement it spells out is the wording of the oath of office in Article II, Section I, “I do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will faithfully execute the Office of President of the United States, and will to the best of my ability, preserve, protect and defend the Constitution of the United States.” It has also become tradition to say “So help me God” at the end of the oath, even though it is not included in the constitutional wording. President Obama has followed this tradition and said it after his oaths of office. The Constitution also does not specify who gives the oath of office, though typically the Chief Justice administers it. This year, Chief Justice John Roberts delivered the oath of office to President Obama and Justice Sonia Sotomayor delivered the oath to Vice President Joe Biden.

On Monday, we saw our nation’s first African American President ceremoniously sworn into office for a second term. Regardless of political leanings, inaugurations are always a reminder that America is a model of democracy, innovation and purpose. Inauguration Day is also the President’s first opportunity to begin sharing what his vision for the next four years will look like. We heard in President Obama’s remarks that he aims to address the nation’s deficit, revamp the tax code, and find a path to sustainable energy, among many other objectives. He has laid out his vision, much of which aligns with prerogatives of different industry sectors within the business community. What is actually achieved in the next term remains to be seen, but in the words of the President, “Decisions are upon us, and we cannot afford delay.” The new Congress has now been sworn in, as well as the Vice President and President. It’s now time to get to work. It’s now time to govern.

President Barack Obama, our first black President is being sworn in again at the United States Capitol today.  If that’s not a dream come true for some, especially those who attended the Freedom March and were alive to witness MLK Jr. “telling them about the dream”, I don’t know what is.

Martin Luther King Jr. fought for Black Americans to be heard.  He fought for equality. King believed that no matter whom you are you deserved to be recognized.  How right he was when he spoke those famous words, on an August day in 1963, “I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character.”  Today as we celebrate the re-election of President Obama, it’s curious to think that when Martin Luther King Jr. spoke those words he was foreshadowing one of the greatest elections in American history and the significant progress of the black vote.

Being a Black American I recognize the struggle to make our voice heard, and today, I am exceedingly proud to see that America is no longer defaulting on the blacks’ right to vote. History tells us that while the Fifteenth Amendment of the Constitution was ratified in 1870 and Black Americans were granted the right to vote, blacks were still fighting for that basic right almost 100 years later. In the last decade we have been seeing the voter participation gap between whites and blacks shrink, and recently when many thought that couldn’t last, it did.

In 1992, with the election of President Clinton, we began to see the black vote start to grow and become an influential demographic in election outcomes. Throughout the 1990’s and early in the 2000’s black turnout ebbed and flowed between 53-60%, just shy of the total turnout for all Americans

It was in 2008 that we saw the electorate take a drastic turn, and what many thought was an anomaly, but we now know is the new normal.  Americans elected their first Black President, partly due to the high black turnout.  According to census data, in 2008 the number of reported registered blacks was 17,375,000.  Of that total, 16,133,000 reported voting, meaning nearly 93% of all registered blacks turned out to vote.  Out of the total Voting Eligible Population 64.7% of blacks came out to vote.  That is a 4.7% change from 2004 to 2008 – 60% having voted in 2004.  Blacks again came out in 2012 turning out in the same numbers as 2008 to help re-elect President Obama. Many political pundits did not expect this group to turnout in the same numbers as 2008, and in fact expected the turnout to drop significantly. While total support for the President  was slightly down from 2008 (95% voted for him in 2008), CNN exit polls still showed that an impressive 93% of Black Americans voted for Obama in 2012.

Will we see another decrease in 2016 or will we see another increase, only time will tell – but one thing is for sure, the black vote has finally gained traction and Black Americans now have a voice, they are being heard and they are taking advantage of that 15th Amendment.  They are honoring the march down Pennsylvania Avenue so many years ago when a young man from Atlanta, Georgia let the world know that he had a dream and 50 years later, that dream is a reality.

The 113th Congress convenes today for the first time, and begins what will undoubtedly be a tumultuous two years in office.  Although party control in both Congressional chambers was unaltered after November’s election, the results of what happened were not status quo.  Nearly 100 new faces are being sworn in today making this one of the youngest and most diverse Congresses in history. Below is a profile of the new 113th Congress.

The Numbers:
House of Representatives:  233 Republicans, 200 Democrats, 2 vacancies, 84 Freshmen
Senate: 53 Democrats, 45 Republicans, 2 Independents, 14 Freshmen (12 elected Nov. 6 and 2 appointments)

Diversity:
Religion: First Hindu, first Buddhist, first “no religion”
Women: Record 20 women in the Senate, 101 women in both Chambers
Minorities: 43 African Americans, 31 Latinos, 12 Asian Americans
Youth: 4 members of the House born in the 80’s, 16 members of the Senate age 50 or younger
LGBT: First openly gay Senator, first openly gay lawmaker of color, 7 total LGBT members

113th Congress will feature the first time a party’s majority (Democratic) is made up of women and minorities, and not white men.

Tenures:
47% of the U.S. Senate is serving in their first six years of office (6 years=1 term)
38% of the U.S. House is serving in their first or second term (2 years=1 term)