The key facts

  • The leadership election was postponed after a nearly two-hour closed-door meeting in the Old Senate Chamber
  • Rick Scott demands that Thune present a plan for the 'lame-duck session' and for operating under a Democratic majority from 2027
  • Republicans lost at least seven seats last week

The meeting ended without a vote

Republicans in the US Senate on Tuesday postponed the election of their conference leader after a number of conservative senators demanded that current Majority Leader John Thune lay out a strategy for the coming weeks and the next Congress. The Hill reports this, citing its own sources, the summary is based on a report by the Anadolu agency.

What is happening and why

According to The Hill, the party's senators spent nearly two hours behind closed doors in the Old Senate Chamber discussing their course after Republicans lost at least seven seats in last week's elections. Senator Ron Johnson of Wisconsin said the discussion ran out of time, and the conference will reconvene at 2:00 p.m. local time (19:00 GMT). According to the outlet, Thune and his supporters want to hold a vote on his re-election the same day, but are prepared to let every senator speak first.

Conservatives' demands

Senator Rick Scott of Florida, who chairs the Steering Committee, said that he and a group of colleagues want to know how Thune intends to manage the remainder of the 'lame-duck session' and operate under conditions in which both chambers will come under Democratic control in 2027. According to him, a decision on whether the vote will take place on Tuesday afternoon has not yet been made. Drawing on his business career experience, he argued that the conference must agree on a plan before choosing its leadership, noting that Democrats take office in 55 days. Another Republican senator, who was not named, described the meeting as a 'lively discussion,' The Hill reports.