LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — The Nebraska Legislature has chosen state Sen. Galen Hadley of Kearney as its next speaker.

Lawmakers voted Wednesday to name Hadley as the replacement for former Speaker of the Legislature Greg Adams, of York, who left office due to term limits. State Sen. Colby Coash of Lincoln was also seeking the position.

Hadley was first elected to the Legislature in 2008 and re-elected in 2012. He served as chairman of the tax-focused Revenue Committee, and oversaw a wide-ranging legislative study of Nebraska’s tax system in 2013. He has two years left to serve due to term limits.

Hadley, a Republican, was the mayor of Kearney from 2004 to 2006 and served on the city council. He previously worked as a professor and senior administrator at the University of Nebraska-Kearney.