Senate GOP selects Thune, House GOP keeps Johnson

John Thune will replace Mitch McConnell as Senate majority leader, and Mike Johnson will remain House speaker in Congress

Sen. John Thune (R-S.D.)
Thune said his initial priority will be border security
(Image credit: Graeme Sloan / Bloomberg via Getty Images)

What happened

Republicans Wednesday elected Sen. John Thune (R-S.D.) to be their leader in the upper chamber, making him the next Senate majority leader in January. Thune, 63, will replace Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.), the longest-serving Senate leader, after beating Sens. John Cornyn (R-Texas) and Rick Scott (R-Fla.) in a secret ballot. House Republicans voted to keep Rep. Mike Johnson (R-La.) as House speaker in the next Congress.

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Rafi Schwartz, The Week US

Rafi Schwartz has worked as a politics writer at The Week since 2022, where he covers elections, Congress and the White House. He was previously a contributing writer with Mic focusing largely on politics, a senior writer with Splinter News, a staff writer for Fusion's news lab, and the managing editor of Heeb Magazine, a Jewish life and culture publication. Rafi's work has appeared in Rolling Stone, GOOD and The Forward, among others.