On Wednesday, Democratic Senator Chuck Schumer of New York took on the role of Majority Leader, taking the title away from Republican Senator Mitch McConnell of Kentucky as regained control of both congressional chambers for the first time since 2011.Ĭontrol of the Senate shifted over to a 50-50 party split on Wednesday as Democratic Georgia Senators Jon Ossoff and Raphael Warnock were both sworn in as the 49th and 50th Democratic senators, leaving Vice President Kamala Harris as the deciding vote should the chambers’ votes ever end in a tie.Īlso sworn in on Wednesday was Democratic Senator Alex Padilla of California. Mitch McConnell Chuck Schumer Kamala Harris Democrats Control House And Senate For First Time Since 2011 As Schumer Ousts Mcconnell Senator Harris, the vice president elect, may not be getting far away from Capitol Hill after all. In recent history, the vice presidents presence in the Senate is a rare occurrence, but in an evenly divided Senate, he or she may need to break tie votes more often if the parties cannot agree. The vice president may decline to vote on a tied matter. Article I, Section 2 of the Constitution states that, The Vice President of the United States shall be President of the Senate, but shall have no Vote, unless they be equally divided.
Tie Votes In The Senate Are Broken By The Vice PresidentĪ Senate split evenly between Democrats and Republicans raises the potential for tie votes.