Washington – The 119th Congress begins Friday with Republicans in full control of the House and Senate for the first time since 2019.
Still, sparks are likely to flare up in the House if Republicans rebel against Speaker Mike Johnson during the leadership vote, which is expected to take place shortly after 12 p.m.
In the Senate, Republicans will officially take the reins after winning the majority in the November elections.
Here's what's in store when the new Congress convenes in Washington:
When do new members of Congress take oath?
The new term of Congress, which lasts for two years, begins on Friday, when House members are expected to take oath. But first, they must elect a speaker, which has not been easy for a divided Republican Party over the past two years. Elections to choose their leader.
Former House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, a California Republican, took 15 rounds to clinch victory in 2023, delaying the swearing in of new members by several days. McCarthy was ousted months later and it took three weeks for Republicans to rally behind Johnson. The Louisiana Republican is hoping to remain speaker, but he faces some opposition within his own party after another messy fight last month over government funding.
The Senate convenes on Fridays to swear in members and then move on to other business.
How is the speaker elected?
Typically, a member of each party will nominate a candidate for Speaker before a vote of all members attending the House. Those candidates were determined in November, when both parties decided separately whom they would support for the leadership.
Johnson won the support of Republicans For the second term. Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, a New York Democrat, will be Nominated by his partyMembers are not required to vote for those candidates and can choose to support someone else or not support anyone.
During the roll call vote, members will state out loud who they prefer for speaker. The candidate with the majority of votes cast wins the Speakership. If no candidate wins in the first round, the vote is repeated until someone wins a majority.
What is the new balance of power in the House and Senate?
Republicans lost control of the Senate in the November elections and will have 53 seats. Democrats, including independents, will control 47.
In the House, Republicans retained their majority, winning 220 seats. Democrats won 215. But President-elect Donald Trump chose three Republicans for positions in his administration, narrowing the party's already narrow margin until a special election is held in the coming months. Representative Matt Gaetz of Florida also said he would not take up his seat, giving the Republican lead 219 to 215.
If all members are present and vote, Johnson will need 218 votes to win the Speaker's election.
What do Republicans want to accomplish first?
Republicans' top priorities include immigration and border security, energy policy and extending tax cuts from Trump's first term. But whether Republicans will be able to accomplish their goals quickly depends on how united the party is. They plan to use a process called budget reconciliation, which would give them the ability to pass large portions of their agenda with a simple majority, avoiding the 60-vote threshold required for most legislation in the Senate.
“It's going to take a lot of work to build consensus among all Republicans to get this done,” Johnson told Fox News on Monday.
Trump has also called for raising the debt ceiling, which limits how much the government can borrow to pay its bills. Without an increase, it is likely to complicate Republicans' legislative priorities.
Who are the new House members joining Congress in 2025?
This week more than 60 new members are joining the House. they are:
- Yasmin Ansari, Democrat from Arizona
- Tom Barrett, a Republican from Michigan
- Michael Baumgartner, a Republican from Washington
- Nick Begich, a Republican from Alaska
- Wesley Bell, a Democrat from Missouri
- Sherry Biggs, a Republican from South Carolina
- Rob Bresnahan, a Republican from Pennsylvania
- Janelle Bynum, a Democrat from Oregon
- Gil Cisneros Jr., Democrat from California
- Herb Conway, a Democrat from New Jersey
- Jeff Krank, a Republican from Colorado
- Maxine Dexter, a Democrat from Oregon
- Troy Downing, a Republican from Montana
- Sarah Elfreth, Democrat from Maryland
- Gabe Evans, a Republican from Colorado
- Julie Fedorchak, a Republican from North Dakota
- Cleo Fields, a Democrat from Louisiana
- Shomari Figures, a Democrat from Alabama
- Laura Friedman, Democrat from California
- Brandon Gill, a Republican from Texas
- Laura Gillen, Democrat from New York
- Craig Goldman, a Republican from Texas
- Maggie Goodlander, a Democrat from New Hampshire
- Adam Gray, Democrat from California
- Abe Hamadeh, a Republican from Arizona
- Mike Haridopoulos, a Republican from Florida
- Pat Harrigan, a Republican from North Carolina
- Mark Harris, a Republican from North Carolina
- Jeff Hurd, a Republican from Colorado
- Brian Jack, a Republican from Georgia
- Julie Johnson, Democrat from Texas
- Mike Kennedy, a Republican from Utah
- Kimberlynn King-Hinds, a Republican from the Northern Mariana Islands (non-voting member)
- Brad Knott, a Republican from North Carolina
- George Latimer, a Democrat from New York
- Sam Liccardo, Democrat from California
- Ryan McKenzie, a Republican from Pennsylvania
- John Mannion, a Democrat from New York
- Sarah McBride, a Democrat from Delaware
- April McClain-Delaney, a Democrat from Maryland
- Kristen McDonald Rivet, a Democrat from Michigan
- Addison McDowell, a Republican from North Carolina
- John McGuire, a Republican from Virginia
- Mark Messmer, a Republican from Indiana
- Dave Min, Democrat from California
- Tim Moore, a Republican from North Carolina
- Riley Moore, a Republican from West Virginia
- Kelly Morrison, Democrat from Minnesota
- Johnny Olszewski, a Democrat from Maryland
- Bob Onder Jr., a Republican from Missouri
- Nelly Pou, a Democrat from New Jersey
- Emily Randall, a Democrat from Washington
- Josh Riley, Democrat from New York
- Luz Rivas, Democrat from California
- Pablo Hernández Rivera, a Democrat from Puerto Rico (non-voting member)
- Derek Schmidt, a Republican from Kansas
- Jefferson Shreve, a Republican from Indiana
- Latifah Simon, Democrat from California
- Marlin Stutzman, a Republican from Indiana
- Suhas Subramaniam, Democrat from Virginia
- David Taylor, a Republican from Ohio
- Derek Tran, a Democrat from California
- Sylvester Turner, a Democrat from Texas
- Eugene Vindman, a Democrat from Virginia
- George Whitesides, Democrat from California
Who are the new senators joining Congress in 2025?
Ten new senators are joining the upper house this year. These include four Democrats and six Republicans.
- Angela Alsobrooks, a Democrat from Maryland
- Jim Banks, a Republican from Indiana
- Lisa Blunt, a Democrat from Rochester, Delaware
- John Curtis, a Republican from Utah
- Ruben Gallego, a Democrat from Arizona
- Jim Justice, a Republican from West Virginia
- David McCormick, a Republican from Pennsylvania
- Bernie Moreno, a Republican from Ohio
- Tim Sheehy, a Republican from Montana
- Elissa Slotkin, Democrat from Michigan
Two other new senators, Democrats Adam Schiff of California and Andy Kim of New Jersey, quickly replaced their outgoing predecessors, and were sworn in in December to gain the upper hand on seniority.