Al Franken's last day in Senate will be Jan. 2

Image: U.S. Senator Franken departs the U.S. Capitol after announcing his r
Sen. Al Franken departs the U.S. Capitol with his wife Franni after announcing his resignation on Dec. 7. Copyright Yuri Gripas Reuters
By Adam Edelman and Frank Thorp V with NBC News
Share this articleComments
Share this articleClose Button

Sen. Al Franken will officially resign from the Senate on Jan. 2, the Minnesota Democrat's office confirmed.

Sen. Al Franken will officially resign from the Senate on Jan. 2, the Minnesota Democrat's office confirmed Wednesday.

Franken had announced this month that he would step down from his post amid a string of sexual misconduct allegations and mounting pressure from fellow Democrats, but hadn't set his exact day of departure.

Franken's appointed successor, Minnesota Lt. Gov. Tina Smith, is scheduled to be sworn in on Jan. 3, his office said.

The outgoing lawmaker, however, still has a lot of things to say before he says goodbye.

Franken said in a Facebook post earlier Wednesday that he would devote his final days in the Senate to delivering a "series of final speeches" on a range of issues. He gave his first one Wednesday afternoon about the work he'd done "to improve education on behalf of Minnesotans and all Americans."

As recently as Monday, at least four senators were urging Franken to not quit, according to Politico, with Sen. Joe Manchin, D-W.Va., telling CNN that his colleague should not have announced his resignation and admitted he was pressing Franken to reconsider his decision.

"I definitely think he should not resign," Manchin said. "I think he should submit himself, which he has willingly done and offered to do, and go through this complete process of an extensive ethics review, and whatever the outcome is, I will live with it."

Share this articleComments