Senate elects Senator Lyons as temporary pro tem to preside over joint assembly

Senators elected Senator Lyons of Chittenden County as the Senate's temporary president pro tempore to preside over a joint assembly called to begin shortly.

The action came after the acting presiding officer explained that the governor left the state early that morning and, under the chamber's rules and the Constitution, the lieutenant governor—who was acting as governor—could not preside over the Senate. The presiding officer cited Senate Rule 8 and said the Senate needed to name a temporary pro tem so someone could preside for the joint assembly. "This morning at 5AM the governor decided to leave state," the acting presiding officer said in explaining why the temporary selection was required.

The senator from Washington nominated Lyons; the senator from Franklin seconded the nomination. With no further nominations, the chamber took a voice vote and the acting presiding officer declared, "The ayes have it." Senator Lyons then accepted the assignment, saying, "Thank you all for your confidence. I will try to be a good acting pro tem." The Senate then prepared to recess and proceed to the House chamber for the joint assembly.

Why it matters: The temporary election ensured the Senate had an officer authorized under joint rules to preside over the assembly. Chamber leadership described an alternate, less-preferred backup if any senator objected: the Senate could leave the chamber and convene the joint assembly in the House to allow members to elect a pro tem in front of both chambers.

What was discussed: The acting presiding officer reviewed the constitutional line of succession and chamber precedent, referenced the Senate's Rule 8 as the mechanism for selecting an interim presiding senator, and noted a statutory reference to succession (Title 19) when questions arose about who would act as governor if both constitutional officers were unavailable. The presiding officer also reminded members that the Senate had adjourned until the following day but described two options for proceeding immediately to enable the joint assembly.

Procedure and outcome: The nomination and second were recorded in the floor exchange; the vote was taken by voice and the acting presiding officer announced the result. No roll-call tally was recorded on the transcript. The formal action was the selection of Senator Lyons to serve as temporary president pro tempore for the purposes of that morning's joint assembly.

Context and next steps: Senators discussed the procedural fallback—moving to the House chamber to elect a temporary pro tem in front of House members—if any senator objected to electing the temporary pro tem in the Senate chamber. With no objections, Lyons was chosen and the Senate recessed to join the House for the joint assembly.