Thune Re-Elected Senate GOP Leader After Midterm Losses

Senate Republicans re-elected John Thune to lead their conference on Tuesday, keeping the South Dakota lawmaker in place for the final years of President Donald Trump's term despite a midterm election that cost the party at least seven Senate seats, according to Al Jazeera.

Thune ran unopposed at a closed-door meeting at the US Capitol, a contrast with two years earlier, when he beat out two rivals to succeed former Senate leader Mitch McConnell. "I appreciated the opportunity to have an open, honest, and transparent conversation with my colleagues today," Thune said in a statement after the vote. "I am honored to have their continued trust and support to lead the Senate Republican Conference in the 120th Congress."

Why did some senators want to delay the vote?

Republican Senator Ron Johnson of Wisconsin circulated a letter asking colleagues to postpone the leadership decision, arguing the conference needed to do some "real soul searching" after last week's losses. Johnson told reporters he tried to push the vote back but acknowledged no one emerged to challenge Thune. "That's part of our problem, who would want the job?" Johnson said, turning to a reporter and joking, "Do you want it?"

Who might have challenged Thune?

Senator Josh Hawley of Missouri said after the vote that a challenger might have surfaced if leadership had waited longer. "I just think that we've got a lot of things that we've got to think through, and I think that to just rush into this and just ratify all of the same leadership, what message does that send?" Hawley said. Despite that criticism, Hawley did not put his own name forward, and the vote proceeded Tuesday as scheduled.

How bad were the Senate losses for Republicans?

Under Thune's tenure as majority leader, Republicans lost at least seven Senate seats in the midterms, Al Jazeera reported. Two additional races, in Alaska and Mississippi, remained uncalled as of the leadership vote, meaning the final tally of GOP losses was not yet settled.

Does Thune still have broad support in the conference?

Not every Republican senator framed the outcome as evidence of discontent. Senator Jim Lankford of Oklahoma said there is "widespread support" for Thune, who Lankford said has taken a different approach than McConnell by seeking out differing viewpoints before major decisions. Lankford did not dispute that the role carries new pressure after the midterm results, calling it "a pretty complicated role."

What else changed in Republican leadership this week?

Thune's re-election came the same week House Republicans selected a successor to Speaker Mike Johnson. Representative Jim Jordan of Ohio was elected US House minority leader, his first turn in a formal party leadership post, according to Al Jazeera's reporting.

The twin leadership votes leave Thune and Jordan to chart the party's course in Congress for the remainder of Trump's presidency, with the uncalled Alaska and Mississippi Senate races still capable of shifting the chamber's final partisan math.

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