Party leaders of the United States Senate
The positions of majority leader and minority leader are held by two United States senators and people of the party leadership of the United States Senate. They serve as chief spokespersons for their respective political parties, holding the majority and the minority in the chamber. They are each elected to their posts by the senators of their party caucuses: the Senate Democratic Caucus and the Senate Republican Conference.
By Senate precedent, the presiding officer gives the majority leader priority in obtaining recognition to speak on the floor. The majority leader serves as the chief representative of their party in the Senate and is considered the most powerful member of the chamber. They also serve as the chief representative of their party in the entire Congress if the House of Representatives, and thus the office of the speaker of the House, is controlled by the opposition party. The Senate's executive and legislative business is also managed and scheduled by the majority leader.
The assistant majority leader and assistant minority leader of the United States Senate, commonly called whips, are the second-ranking members of each party's leadership. The main function of the majority and minority whips is to gather votes of their respective parties on major issues. As the second-ranking members of Senate leadership, if there is no floor leader present, the whip may become acting floor leader.
Existing floor leaders
The Senate of the 119th Congress is composed in 2025 of 53 Republicans, 45 Democrats, and 2 independents; both the independents caucus with the Democrats.The leaders are Senators John Thune of South Dakota and Chuck Schumer of New York. The assistant leaders, or whips, are Senators John Barrasso of Wyoming and Dick Durbin of Illinois.
History
At first a Senate leader was an informal position usually an influential committee chairman, or a person of great eloquence, seniority, or wealth, such as Daniel Webster and Nelson Aldrich. By at least 1850, parties in each chamber of Congress began naming chairs, and while conference and caucus chairs carried very little authority, the Senate party floor leader positions arose from the position of conference chair.Senate Democrats began electing their floor leaders in 1920 while they were in the minority. John W. Kern was a Democratic senator from Indiana. While the title was not official, the Senate website identifies Kern as the first Senate party leader, serving in that capacity from 1913 through 1917, while serving concurrently as chairman of the Senate Democratic Caucus.
In 1925, the Republicans also adopted this language when Charles Curtis became the first majority leader, although his immediate predecessor Henry Cabot Lodge is considered the first Senate majority leader. However, despite this new, formal leadership structure, the Senate leader initially had virtually no power. Since the Democrats were fatally divided into northern liberal and southern conservative blocs, the Democratic leader had even less power than his title suggested.
Joseph T. Robinson of Arkansas, the Democratic leader from 1923 to 1937, saw it as his responsibility not to lead the Democrats, but to work the Senate for the president's benefit, no matter who the president was. When Coolidge and Hoover were president, he assisted them in passing Republican legislation. Robinson helped end government operation of Muscle Shoals, helped pass the Hoover Tariff, and stymied a Senate investigation of the Power Trust. Robinson switched his own position on a drought relief program for farmers when Hoover made a proposal for a more modest measure. Alben Barkley called Robinson's cave-in "the most humiliating spectacle that could be brought about in an intelligent legislative body." When Franklin Roosevelt became president, Robinson followed the new president as loyally as he had followed Coolidge and Hoover. Robinson passed bills in the Hundred Days so quickly that Will Rogers joked "Congress doesn't pass legislation any more, they just wave at the bills as they go by.
In 1937, the rule giving majority leader right of first recognition was created. With the addition of this rule, the Senate majority leader enjoyed far greater control over the agenda of which bills to be considered on the floor.
During Lyndon B. Johnson's tenure as Senate leader, the leader gained new powers over committee assignments.
Senatorial role of the vice president
The United States Constitution designates the vice president of the United States as president of the Senate. The Constitution also calls for a president pro tempore, to serve as the presiding officer when the president of the Senate is absent. In practice, neither the vice president nor the president pro tempore—customarily the most senior senator in the majority party—actually presides over the Senate on a daily basis; that task is given to junior senators of the majority party. Since the vice president may be of a different party from the majority and is not a Senate member subject to discipline, the rules of procedure of the Senate give the vice president no power beyond the presiding role. For these reasons, it is the majority leader who, in practice, manages the Senate. This is in contrast to the House of Representatives, where the elected speaker of the House has a great deal of discretionary power and generally presides over votes on legislative bills.Powers of the majority leader
Under a long-standing Senate precedent, motions or amendments by the majority leader are granted precedence over other motions by other senators. The majority leader can therefore make at any time a motion to proceed to the consideration of a bill on the Senate Calendar ; a motion to proceed may be agreed to either by unanimous consent or through the invocation of cloture. Conventionally, no senator other than the majority leader introduces motions to proceed, although every senator is theoretically allowed to. In addition, the majority leader can block consideration of amendments through a practice known as "filling the tree", and decides which members will fill each of the committee seats reserved to the majority party; members of committees are therefore often prone to following the instructions of the majority leader, and rarely place bills on the Senate Calendar without the latter's consent.List of party leaders
The Democratic Party first selected a leader in 1920. The Republican Party first formally designated a leader in 1925.| Congress | Dates | Democratic whip | Democratic leader | Majority | Republican leader | Republican whip |
| – March 4, 1915 | J. Hamilton Lewis | - | Democratic ← majority | - | - | |
| – December 6, 1915 | J. Hamilton Lewis | - | Democratic ← majority | - | - | |
| – December 13, 1915 | J. Hamilton Lewis | - | Democratic ← majority | - | James Wadsworth | |
| – March 4, 1917 | J. Hamilton Lewis | - | Democratic ← majority | - | Charles Curtis | |
| – March 4, 1919 | J. Hamilton Lewis | - | Democratic ← majority | - | Charles Curtis | |
| – April 27, 1920 | Peter Gerry | - | Republican majority → | Henry Cabot Lodge | Charles Curtis | |
| – March 4, 1921 | Peter Gerry | Oscar Underwood | Republican majority → | Henry Cabot Lodge | Charles Curtis | |
| – March 4, 1923 | Peter Gerry | Oscar Underwood | Republican majority → | Henry Cabot Lodge | Charles Curtis | |
| – December 3, 1923 | Peter Gerry | Oscar Underwood | Republican majority → | Henry Cabot Lodge | Charles Curtis | |
| – November 9, 1924 | Peter Gerry | Joseph T. Robinson | Republican majority → | Henry Cabot Lodge | Charles Curtis | |
| November 9, 1924 – March 4, 1925 | Peter Gerry | Joseph T. Robinson | Republican majority → | Charles Curtis | Wesley Jones | |
| – March 4, 1927 | Peter Gerry | Joseph T. Robinson | Republican majority → | Charles Curtis | Wesley Jones | |
| – March 4, 1929 | Peter Gerry | Joseph T. Robinson | Republican majority → | Charles Curtis | Wesley Jones | |
| – March 4, 1931 | Morris Sheppard | Joseph T. Robinson | Republican majority → | James E. Watson | Simeon Fess | |
| – March 4, 1933 | Morris Sheppard | Joseph T. Robinson | Republican majority → | James E. Watson | Simeon Fess | |
| – January 3, 1935 | J. Hamilton Lewis | Joseph T. Robinson | Democratic ← majority | Charles L. McNary | Felix Hebert | |
| – January 3, 1937 | J. Hamilton Lewis | Joseph T. Robinson | Democratic ← majority | Charles L. McNary | None | |
| – July 14, 1937 | J. Hamilton Lewis | Joseph T. Robinson | Democratic ← majority | Charles L. McNary | None | |
| July 14, 1937 – January 3, 1939 | J. Hamilton Lewis | Alben W. Barkley | Democratic ← majority | Charles L. McNary | None | |
| January 3, 1939 – April 9, 1939 | J. Hamilton Lewis | Alben W. Barkley | Democratic ← majority | Charles L. McNary | None | |
| April 9, 1939 – January 3, 1940 | Sherman Minton | Alben W. Barkley | Democratic ← majority | Charles L. McNary | None | |
| January 3, 1940 – January 3, 1941 | Sherman Minton | Alben W. Barkley | Democratic ← majority | Warren Austin | None | |
| – January 3, 1943 | J. Lister Hill | Alben W. Barkley | Democratic ← majority | Charles L. McNary | None | |
| – February 25, 1944 | J. Lister Hill | Alben W. Barkley | Democratic ← majority | Charles L. McNary | Kenneth Wherry | |
| February 25, 1944 – January 3, 1945 | J. Lister Hill | Alben W. Barkley | Democratic ← majority | Wallace H. White | Kenneth Wherry | |
| – January 3, 1947 | J. Lister Hill | Alben W. Barkley | Democratic ← majority | Wallace H. White | Kenneth Wherry | |
| – January 3, 1949 | Scott W. Lucas | Alben W. Barkley | Republican majority → | Wallace H. White | Kenneth Wherry | |
| – January 3, 1951 | Francis Myers | Scott W. Lucas | Democratic ← majority | Kenneth S. Wherry | Leverett Saltonstall | |
| – January 3, 1952 | Lyndon B. Johnson | Ernest McFarland | Democratic ← majority | Kenneth S. Wherry | Leverett Saltonstall | |
| – January 3, 1953 | Lyndon B. Johnson | Ernest McFarland | Democratic ← majority | Styles Bridges | Leverett Saltonstall | |
| – July 31, 1953 | Earle Clements | Lyndon B. Johnson | Republican majority → | Robert A. Taft | Leverett Saltonstall | |
| – January 3, 1955 | Earle Clements | Lyndon B. Johnson | Republican majority → | William Knowland | Leverett Saltonstall | |
| – January 3, 1957 | Earle Clements | Lyndon B. Johnson | Democratic ← majority | William Knowland | Leverett Saltonstall | |
| – January 3, 1959 | Mike Mansfield | Lyndon B. Johnson | Democratic ← majority | William Knowland | Everett Dirksen | |
| – January 3, 1961 | Mike Mansfield | Lyndon B. Johnson | Democratic ← majority | Everett Dirksen | Thomas Kuchel | |
| – January 3, 1963 | Hubert Humphrey | Mike Mansfield | Democratic ← majority | Everett Dirksen | Thomas Kuchel | |
| – January 3, 1965 | Hubert Humphrey | Mike Mansfield | Democratic ← majority | Everett Dirksen | Thomas Kuchel | |
| – January 3, 1967 | Russell Long | Mike Mansfield | Democratic ← majority | Everett Dirksen | Thomas Kuchel | |
| – January 3, 1969 | Russell Long | Mike Mansfield | Democratic ← majority | Everett Dirksen | Thomas Kuchel | |
| – September 7, 1969 | Ted Kennedy | Mike Mansfield | Democratic ← majority | Everett Dirksen | Hugh Scott | |
January 3, 1971 | Ted Kennedy | Mike Mansfield | Democratic ← majority | Hugh Scott | Robert Griffin | |
| – January 3, 1973 | Robert Byrd | Mike Mansfield | Democratic ← majority | Hugh Scott | Robert Griffin | |
| – January 3, 1975 | Robert Byrd | Mike Mansfield | Democratic ← majority | Hugh Scott | Robert Griffin | |
| – January 3, 1977 | Robert Byrd | Mike Mansfield | Democratic ← majority | Hugh Scott | Robert Griffin | |
| – January 3, 1979 | Alan Cranston | Robert Byrd | Democratic ← majority | Howard Baker | Ted Stevens | |
| – November 1, 1979 | Alan Cranston | Robert Byrd | Democratic ← majority | Howard Baker | Ted Stevens | |
| – March 5, 1980 | Alan Cranston | Robert Byrd | Democratic ← majority | Ted Stevens | Ted Stevens | |
| – January 3, 1981 | Alan Cranston | Robert Byrd | Democratic ← majority | Howard Baker | Ted Stevens | |
| – January 3, 1983 | Alan Cranston | Robert Byrd | Republican majority → | Howard Baker | Ted Stevens | |
| – January 3, 1985 | Alan Cranston | Robert Byrd | Republican majority → | Howard Baker | Ted Stevens | |
| – January 3, 1987 | Alan Cranston | Robert Byrd | Republican majority → | Bob Dole | Alan Simpson | |
| – January 3, 1989 | Alan Cranston | Robert Byrd | Democratic ← majority | Bob Dole | Alan Simpson | |
| – January 3, 1991 | Alan Cranston | George Mitchell | Democratic ← majority | Bob Dole | Alan Simpson | |
| – January 3, 1993 | Wendell Ford | George Mitchell | Democratic ← majority | Bob Dole | Alan Simpson | |
| – January 3, 1995 | Wendell Ford | George Mitchell | Democratic ← majority | Bob Dole | Alan Simpson | |
| – June 12, 1996 | Wendell Ford | Tom Daschle | Republican majority → | Bob Dole | Trent Lott | |
| – January 3, 1997 | Wendell Ford | Tom Daschle | Republican majority → | Trent Lott | Don Nickles | |
| – January 3, 1999 | Wendell Ford | Tom Daschle | Republican majority → | Trent Lott | Don Nickles | |
| – January 3, 2001 | Harry Reid | Tom Daschle | Republican majority → | Trent Lott | Don Nickles | |
| – January 20, 2001 | Harry Reid | Tom Daschle | Democratic ← majority | Trent Lott | Don Nickles | |
| – June 6, 2001 | Harry Reid | Tom Daschle | Republican majority → | Trent Lott | Don Nickles | |
| – November 23, 2002 | Harry Reid | Tom Daschle | Democratic ← majority | Trent Lott | Don Nickles | |
| – January 3, 2003 | Harry Reid | Tom Daschle | majority → | Trent Lott | Don Nickles | |
| – January 3, 2005 | Harry Reid | Tom Daschle | majority → | Bill Frist | Mitch McConnell | |
| – January 3, 2007 | Dick Durbin | Harry Reid | majority → | Bill Frist | Mitch McConnell | |
| – December 18, 2007 | Dick Durbin | Harry Reid | Democratic ← majority | Mitch McConnell | Trent Lott | |
| – January 3, 2009 | Dick Durbin | Harry Reid | Democratic ← majority | Mitch McConnell | Jon Kyl | |
| – January 3, 2011 | Dick Durbin | Harry Reid | Democratic ← majority | Mitch McConnell | Jon Kyl | |
| – January 3, 2013 | Dick Durbin | Harry Reid | Democratic ← majority | Mitch McConnell | Jon Kyl | |
| – January 3, 2015 | Dick Durbin | Harry Reid | Democratic ← majority | Mitch McConnell | John Cornyn | |
| – January 3, 2017 | Dick Durbin | Harry Reid | Republican majority → | Mitch McConnell | John Cornyn | |
| – January 3, 2019 | Dick Durbin | Chuck Schumer | Republican majority → | Mitch McConnell | John Cornyn | |
| – January 3, 2021 | Dick Durbin | Chuck Schumer | Republican majority → | Mitch McConnell | John Thune | |
| – January 20, 2021 | Dick Durbin | Chuck Schumer | Republican majority → | Mitch McConnell | John Thune | |
| – January 3, 2023 | Dick Durbin | Chuck Schumer | Democratic ← majority | Mitch McConnell | John Thune | |
| – January 3, 2025 | Dick Durbin | Chuck Schumer | Democratic ← majority | Mitch McConnell | John Thune | |
| – January 3, 2027 | Dick Durbin | Chuck Schumer | Republican majority → | John Thune | John Barrasso | |
| Congress | Dates | Democratic whip | Democratic leader | Majority | Republican leader | Republican whip |