Hawaii's governor announced Wednesday that Lt. Gov. Brian Schatz will fill the seat left vacant after the death of longtime U.S. Sen. Daniel Inouye.

Democratic Gov. Neil Abercrombie chose Schatz three days after the funeral for Inouye, 88.

Inouye, a Democrat, won his ninth consecutive term in 2010 and was the second-longest-serving senator in the chamber's history.

Inouye had recommended U.S. Rep. Colleen Hanabusa as his replacement in a letter shortly before he died.