Series: Personnel and Policy Changes Ahead in 2025 – Senate Leadership
Posted by Ryan Fitzgerald on November 18, 2024

In continuation of our series of blog posts profiling key players in the White House administration and in Congress, below you will find profiles on the newly elected Senate Republican leadership.

Senator John Thune
Senate Majority Leader: Senator John Thune
Last week the Senate Republicans elected Senator John Thune from South Dakota to be their new leader, thus vaulting him to be the Senate Majority in the 119th Congress. The vote, which takes place by secret ballot, was held Wednesday where Thune beat Senator John Cornyn of Texas by 5 votes, after two rounds of voting. The third candidate that vied for the leadership position was Senator Rick Scott (R-FL), who just won re-election in 2024, but did not garner the support of his party for the final round of voting.
Thune will step into this new role on January 3, 2025, when the new senate is sworn in. The Senate Majority Leader works with the committee chairs and ranking members to schedule business on the floor and organizes his/her caucus. The Senate Majority Leader is essentially responsible for managing the majority party’s legislative agenda.
The new leader takes over for the longest serving Senate Republican Leader in history, Senator Mitch McConnell (R-KY), who has served in this role since 2007.
Senator Thune served in the United State House of Representatives for 3 terms starting in 1996. He then narrowly lost his 2002 campaign for the United States Senate, eventually winning in 2004. Thune currently serves as the Senate Republican Whip. Previously Thune served as chairman of the Senate Republican Policy Committee from 2009–2011 and chairman of the Senate Republican Conference from 2012-2018.
Earlier this week Senator Thune said he will encourage Republicans to back President-Elect Donald Trump’s policy agenda including focusing on cracking down on immigration, bringing down prices, increasing domestic energy production and passing tax legislation. Due to the leadership role and responsibilities of the Senate Majority Leader, Senator Thune will have the greatest influence on bills being brought to the floor, setting priorities for the 119th Congress and on encouraging Senate Republicans to follow specific policy goals.

Senator John Barrasso
Senate Majority Whip: Senator John Barrasso
As Senator Thune was elected to his new position as Senate Majority Leader, the GoWest Advocacy Team is pleased to showcase that Senator John Barrasso of Wyoming has ascended to the position of Senate Majority Whip. GoWest and Wyoming Credit Unions have a long-standing relationship with Senator Barrasso and his staff. Senator Barrasso has traditionally been a strong credit union supporter, and we are hopeful his leadership position will help give more visibility to credit union priorities.
This new role makes Senator Barrasso the number two leader for the Republicans in the Senate. Senator Barrasso ran for this position uncontested and was one of only three senators even eligible for this role. If he chooses to, Senator Barrasso can serve in this role for 6 years. Currently, Senator Barrasso is the Chairman of the Senate Republican Conference, making him the third-ranking member in the Senate Republican leadership. As you may know, the Senator has been serving in the United States Senate since 2007. He is also currently the ranking member of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee as well as sitting on the all-important Senate Finance Committee and Committee on Foreign Relations.
The primary job of a Senate Majority Whip is to maintain organization and order within the majority party. In that position, Senator Barrasso will be responsible for keeping the party informed on important legislation, counting votes, and helping the Leader to emphasize the party’s agenda and policy positions. This is considered a challenging position as much of its focus is on negotiations and ensuring that the party leader and the other members are on the same page. It is especially challenging when the majority party only holds the majority by a small margin. For Barrasso, this will be true for the next two years. We look forward to continuing working closely with Senator Barrasso.

Senator Tom Cotton
Senate Republican Conference Chair: Senator Tim Cotton
As Senator John Barrasso moves into his new role as Senate Majority Leader, Senator Tom Cotton from Arkansas will take over as the Senate Republican Conference Chair. This role is viewed as the “Chief Messenger” for the Senate Republicans and is the “number 3” leadership position.
Senator Cotton beat out Iowa Senator Joni Ernst for this position. Currently, Senator Cotton serves on the Judiciary Committee, where he serves as the Ranking Member for the Subcommittee on Criminal Justice and Counterterrorism, the Intelligence Committee, and the Armed Services Committee. Senator Cotton is known for helping unite Senate Republican leadership with the more conservative members of the party. Cotton will now help other Senate Republicans with their messaging on critical issues, and more specifically on hot button topics, helping to drive the majorities policy efforts in the 119th Congress. Additionally, Senator Cotton’s name was mentioned as a potential to join Trump’s administration, but he instead opted to stay in the Senate.
Additionally, as you may recall, the incoming Chairman of the NCUA, Kyle Hauptman was previously a staff member for Senator Cotton serving as his advisor on economic policy, as well as Staff Director of the Senate Banking Committee’s Subcommittee on Economic Policy, prior to being appointed to the NCUA.
All three members of the Republican leadership team will assume their new roles as they kick-off their majority in the 119th Congress. The GoWest Advocacy Team will continue to work closely with both the Majority and the Minority leadership in both the Senate and House to promote credit union priorities going forward.
Posted in Advocacy on the Move, Federal Advocacy.