Presidential transition of Barack Obama he was sworn in as Vice President on January 20, 2009. Although he was sworn in for a seventh Senate term in early January 2009, he resigned from the seat on January 15, 2009, having served just over 36 years in the body. On November 24, 2008, Delaware Gov. Ruth Ann Minner announced that Ted Kaufman would serve as Biden's appointed replacement. Kaufman was sworn in on January 16, 2009. A special election was held in November 2010, which elected Democratic candidate Chris Coons. During his abbreviated final term in the Senate, Biden went on a diplomatic fact-finding trip to
Confirmations of Barack Obama's Cabinet by the Energy and Natural Resources Committee. Nobel Prize–winning scientist Steven Chu was unanimously confirmed by the U.S. Senate on January 20, 2009. On January 21, 2009, Chu was sworn in as Secretary of Energy in the Barack Obama administration. Chu is the first person appointed to the Cabinet after having won a Nobel Prize. He is also the second Chinese American to be a member of the Cabinet after Elaine Chao. On February 1, 2013, Secretary Chu announced his resignation pending the confirmation of a successor. On March 4, 2013 President Obama announced he was nominating Ernest Moniz as