Party leaders of the United States Senate

Majority Leader of the United States Senate
Incumbent Harry Reid (D) since January 3, 2007
Inaugural holder	Charles Curtis (R)
Formation	March 4, 1925

Minority Leader of the United States Senate
Incumbent Mitch McConnell (R) since January 3, 2007
Inaugural holder	Oscar Underwood (D)
Formation	April 27, 1920

Majority Whip of the United States Senate Democratic Whip
Incumbent Richard Durbin since January 3, 2007
Style	Senator
Inaugural holder	J. Hamilton Lewis
Formation	1913

Minority Whip of the United States Senate Republican Whip
Incumbent John Cornyn since January 3, 2013
Style	Senator
Inaugural holder	James Wadsworth, Jr.
Formation	1915

The Senate Majority and Minority Leaders are two United States Senators who are elected by the party conferences that hold the majority and the minority respectively. These leaders serve as the chief Senate spokespeople for their parties and manage and schedule the legislative and executive business of the Senate. By rule, the Presiding Officer gives the Majority Leader priority in obtaining recognition to speak on the floor of the Senate. The Majority Leader customarily serves as the chief representative of his or her party in Senate, and sometimes even in all of Congress if the House of Representatives and thus the office of Speaker of the House is controlled by the opposition party.

The Assistant Majority and Minority Leaders of the United States Senate (commonly called Senate Majority and Minority Whips) are the second-ranking members of the party leadership of the United States Senate. The main function of the Majority and Minority Whips is to gather votes on major issues. Because he or she is the second ranking member of the Senate, if there is no floor leader present, the whip may become acting floor leader. Before 1969, the official titles were Majority Whip and Minority Whip.

Many state senates are organized in the same way as the United States Senate.

Duties

Per 19 U.S.C. § 2191(c)(1), an implementing bill for a Fast track negotiating authority (Trade Promotion Authority) trade agreement submitted by the President is introduced (by request) in the House by the majority leader of the House and (by request) in the Senate by the majority leader of the Senate.

Current floor leaders

The Senate is currently composed of 53 Democrats, 45 Republicans, and 2 independents, both of whom caucus with the Democrats.

The current leaders are Democratic Majority Leader Harry Reid of Nevada and Republican Minority Leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky. The current Assistant Majority Leader is Democrat Dick Durbin of Illinois. The current Assistant Minority Leader is Republican John Cornyn of Texas.

History

The Democrats began the practice of electing floor leaders in 1920 while they were in the minority. John Worth Kern (December 20, 1849 – August 17, 1917) was a Democratic United States Senator from Indiana. While the title was not official, he is considered to be the first Senate Majority leader (and in turn, the first Senate Democratic Leader), while serving concurrently as Chairman of the Senate Democratic Caucus. In 1925 the majority (at the time) Republicans also adopted this language when Charles Curtis became the first (official) Majority Leader, although his immediate predecessor Henry Cabot Lodge is considered the first (unofficial) Majority Leader.

The 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 leader of the body when the President of the Senate (the Vice President) is absent. In practice, neither the Vice President nor the President pro tempore—customarily the most senior (longest-serving) 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, in part so they may learn proper procedure. For these reasons, it is the Majority Leader who in practice manages the Senate.

List of party leaders

The Democratic Party first selected a leader in 1920. The Republican Party first formally designated a leader in 1925.

Cong ress	Dates	Democratic Whip	Democratic Leader	Majority	Republican Leader	Republican Whip
63	1913 – 1915	J. Hamilton Lewis	None	← D Maj	None	None
64	1915 – ? 1915					James Wadsworth, Jr.
	1915 ? – 1917					Charles Curtis
65	1917 – 1919
66	1920 – 1921	Peter Gerry	Oscar Underwood	R Maj →	Henry Cabot Lodge (unofficial)
67	1921 – 1923
68	March 4, 1923 – November 9, 1924		Joseph Taylor Robinson
	1925				Charles Curtis	Wesley Jones
69	1925 – 1927
70	1927 – 1929
71	1929 – 1931	Morris Sheppard			James E. Watson	Simeon Fess
72	1931 – 1933
73	1933 – 1935	J. Hamilton Lewis		← D Maj	Charles L. McNary	Felix Hebert
74	1935 – 1937					None
75	January 3, 1937 – July 14, 1937
	July 22, 1937 – January 3, 1939		Alben W. Barkley
76	1939	Sherman Minton
	1940				Warren Austin (acting)
77	1941 – 1943	Lister Hill			Charles L. McNary
78	1943 – 1945				Wallace H. White Jr. (acting)	Kenneth Wherry
79	1945 – 1947				Wallace H. White Jr.
80	1947 – 1949	Scott Lucas		R Maj →
81	1949 – 1951	Francis Myers	Scott W. Lucas	← D Maj	Kenneth S. Wherry	Leverett Saltonstall
82	1951 – 1952	Lyndon Johnson	Ernest McFarland
	1952 – 1953				Styles Bridges
83	January 3, 1953 – July 31, 1953	Earle Clements	Lyndon B. Johnson	R Maj →	Robert A. Taft
	August 3, 1953 – January 3, 1955				William F. Knowland
84	1955 – 1957			← D Maj
85	1957 – 1959	Mike Mansfield				Everett Dirksen
86	1959 – 1961				Everett M. Dirksen	Thomas Kuchel
87	1961 – 1963	Hubert Humphrey	Mike Mansfield
88	1963 – 1965
89	1965 – 1967	Russell Long
90	1967 – 1969
91	January 3, 1969 – September 7, 1969	Ted Kennedy				Hugh Scott
	September 24, 1969 – January 3, 1971				Hugh Scott	Robert Griffin
92	1971 – 1973	Robert Byrd
93	1973 – 1975
94	1975 – 1977
95	1977 – 1979	Alan Cranston	Robert Byrd		Howard Baker	Ted Stevens
96	1979 – 1981
97	1981 – 1983			R Maj →
98	1983 – 1985
99	1985 – 1987				Bob Dole	Alan Simpson
100	1987 – 1989			← D Maj
101	1989 – 1991		George Mitchell
102	1991 – 1993	Wendell Ford
103	1993 – 1995
104	January 3, 1995 – June 12, 1996		Tom Daschle	R Maj →		Trent Lott
	June 12, 1996 – January 3, 1997				Trent Lott	Don Nickles
105	1997 – 1999
106	1999 – 2001	Harry Reid
107	January 3 – 20, 2001			← D Maj
	January 20 – June 6, 2001			R Maj →
	June 6, 2001 – January 3, 2003			← D Maj
108	2003 – 2005			R Maj →	Bill Frist	Mitch McConnell
109	2005 – 2007	Richard Durbin	Harry Reid
110	January 3, 2007 – December 18, 2007			← D Maj	Mitch McConnell	Trent Lott
	December 19, 2007 – January 3, 2009					Jon Kyl
111	2009 – 2011
112	2011 – 2013
113	2013 – 2015					John Cornyn
Cong ress	Dates	Democratic Whip	Democratic Leader	Majority	Republican Leader	Republican Whip

See also

• Party leaders of the United States House of Representatives
• President pro tempore of the United States Senate
• List of political parties in the United States

External links

• Majority and Minority Leaders and Party Whips, via Senate.gov
• Senate Majority
• Republican Minority