Former Virginia Gov. Mark Warner, a Democrat, has claimed the Senate seat left open by retiring GOP Sen. John Warner, the Washington Post reported. The win is no surprise--Mark Warner has long been ahead of former Gov. James Gilmore, a Republican, in the polls.

As the chairman of the National Governors Association, Mark Warner made education a priority and, in particular, pushed for high school redesign. Warner wrote a commentary for Education Week back in 2004 that describes his “three-pronged” approach to improving high schools. Elements include expanding programs such as dual enrollment that help students earn college credit, offering intensive remediation, and helping students who want to go to work after graduation earn industrial certification while in high school. He served as governor of Virginia from 2002 to January 2006.