He first got himself into politics in 1990 when he was elected as Governor of Nebraska. After he was re-elected in 1994, Nelson found himself making a futile bid to run for an open seat in the U.S. Senate in 1996, losing to Republican incumbent Chuck Hagel. He decided to leave the Governor’s office in January 1999 because of term limits, after serving two full terms. Ben Nelson got elected to the U.S. Senate in the 2000 election once occupant Bob Kerrey retired. Having announced on December 27, 2011 that he would not seek a third Senate term in 2012, he got succeeded by Republican Deb Fischer.