[1][2] In 1832, Governor Charles Lynch appointed him as a Jacksonian, the forerunner of the modern Democratic Party, to fill the United States Senate vacancy left by Powhatan Ellis.

He ran for the seat in his own right as an anti-Jacksonian (later Whig) and served from November 22, 1833 to January 22, 1838, when he resigned.

During his time in office, he served as the chairman of the U.S. Senate Committee on Private Lands.

After leaving the Senate, he moved to Winchester, Virginia, where he resumed practicing law until his death.

Like many southern United States politicians of his day, Black was a slave owner.