What do you suppose goes on in the Senate? Maybe a lot of sitting, listening, waiting, and voting on boring or inane bills, like dedicating April 17 as “Blah, Blah, Blah Day” (really!)

But what if I told you that, if you got really lucky, you could get a tradition like no other? Some may call it… a sweet tradition…

Back in 1965, the newly elected former musical star George Murphy (R-CA) started a new tradition: he started keeping sweets in his desk. He had a sweet tooth and kept candy in his desk (no one knows what it was), and in 1968, he moved to another seat and started keeping candy in THAT desk. That is where the legendary candy desk sits today. Although he lost reelection in 1970, other senators made sure to pass on the torch. Many senators have supplied hard candy, to local confectionary treats, to oddly specific ones, such as the “Fine assortment of sweets” from “candy and chocolate associations.” brought by Steve Symms (R-ID). During Rick Santorum (R-PA)’s time at the desk, roughly 100 pounds of Hershey’s products were shipped to keep the candy desk filled with, well, candy. It is currently occupied by Markwayne Mullin (R-OK), whose name sounds like a rap artist’s name rather than a senator’s. The biggest letdown of the desk, however, is that the people who sit at it can’t eat the candy. I, mean, c’mon! You gotta have something to power through that 5-hour filibuster!

The candy desk currently sits on the right side, or on the side where members of the Republican party sit, though this wasn’t established until the early 1980s. No one even knew about it until 1985! The Democrats also have their own candy desk, but it is far less well-known. Heck, even the head of the United States Senate Historical Office, called the Historian of the United States Senate, didn’t even know about it!

The candy desk stands as a testament to how surprising things can be in history. If you are running for the US Senate, and you read this, this may make you even more hopeful of winning. And, who knows, if you do win, and you get to your seat, and see this when you open the drawer…

…you better have some Tootsie Rolls on you!