INDIANAPOLIS — Former Indiana Sen. Joe Donnelly will be heading to Rome as the U.S. ambassador to the Vatican.
The U.S. Senate approved Donnelly for the position in a voice vote Thursday. President Joe Biden nominated Donnelly in October.
Donnelly is a Democrat who served six years in the U.S. House of Representatives from a South Bend-area district before winning election to the Senate in 2012. He lost his 2018 reelection bid to Republican Mike Braun.
There is a lot of speculation that Donnelly will run for governor in 2024. Republican names already being tossed out include Sen. Braun and Rep. Trey Hollingsworth.
Donnelly has bachelor’s and law degrees from the University of Notre Dame. Notre Dame President Rev. John Jenkins called Donnelly “a person of deep Catholic faith and commitment to public service.” Donnelly has also been a professor at Notre Dame.
The Indiana Democratic Party issued a statement at the time of Donnelly's nomination. It reads in part:
Senator Joe Donnelly is a man of character, integrity, and faith, and his fundamental belief in the values we cherish as Hoosiers and Americans will make Joe a great fit to serve as Ambassador to the Holy See at the Vatican.
Indiana Democrats couldn't be prouder of Joe, who has time and again looked after those who needed a helping hand while providing a common-sense voice in our politics.
