Stop calling him former governor, just like you had to stop calling him mayor a decade ago – John Hickenlooper is now a Colorado U.S. senator.

He was sworn in Sunday morning, with Colorado’s other Democratic senator and his former employee, Michael Bennet, standing behind him.

The oath was administered by Vice President Mike Pence, who, like the senators, wore a face mask. The senators were sworn in in pairs. Hickenlooper stood next to Republican Cindy Hyde-Smith of Mississippi.

After the oath was completed, Pence bumped elbows with Hickenlooper and Hyde-Smith rather than shake hands, both signs of the pandemic times.

“It feels a little wild,” Hickenlooper told Colorado Politics in a phone interview Sunday afternoon, following his swearing-in.

“After all the work and all the long campaign, and to finally get sworn in – it’s a pretty good feeling.”

Hickenlooper said he’s revved up for a fast start.

“I was in small business for so many years, and that optimism and positive attitude that are essential for small businesses to succeed – I think that’s what we need to get in Washington again,” he said. “And to find the right opportunities and right issues in which Republicans can work with Democrats, rural can work with urban, east can work with west. The stakes are too high for us to continue the relentless bickering.”

Hickenlooper trounced Sen. Cory Gardner, the one-term Republican from the Eastern Plains, two months ago.

The Coloradan is one of six new faces in the 100-member chamber, joining Sens. Cynthia Lummis, R-Wyo., Ben Ray Lujan, D-N.M., Roger Marshall, R-Kan., and Bill Hagerty, R-Tenn. and Mark Kelly, D-Ariz.

Control of the Senate, however, won’t be decided until Tuesday, pending the Georgia runoff between Sen. Kelly Loeffler and the Rev. Raphael Warnock, as Sen. David Perdue meets John Ossoff. Both incumbents are Republicans.

Hickenlooper’s campaign sent out a statement to supporters Sunday afternoon.

“As I took my oath of office, promising to do right by my constituents, the Constitution, and our country, I was filled with gratitude for this team,” Hickenlooper said of those who elected him. “Because of you, we won our bitterly competitive race, gave Coloradans a leader they know and trust, and are one step closer to getting our country back on track.

The statement spoke to the difficulties of 2020, led by the pandemic.

“There’s a lot to do, and Lord knows the system in Washington is a broken mess,” Hickenlooper stated. “But I’m an optimist. I know this country is ready to begin a new chapter.”

Gardner has not been responsive to media requests since he lost the Nov. 3 election, but on Dec. 8 he posted a video of his farewell address to the Senate on his Twitter account. Gardner served three terms in the Colorado House of Representatives and two terms in the U.S. House before being elected to the Senate in 2014.