WASHINGTON– Republicans elected senator from South Dakota. John Thune as the next Senate Majority Leader, accomplishing a momentous change in their leadership that elevates a top aide to the Mitch McConnell to a key position as president-elect Donald Trump returns to the White House.

Thune, 63, is in his fourth term in the Senate and has promised to work closely with Trump, despite the differences they have had over the years, and will play a crucial role in the new president’s efforts to make advance its political agenda. The two spoke on the phone shortly after Thune’s election, the senator posted on X Wednesday afternoon, adding that “Senate Republicans are excited and ready to get to work” with the new president.

Trump then praised Thune for her social media platform, Truth Social. “He is moving quickly and will do an outstanding job,” Trump wrote. “I look forward to working with him.”

Thune beat two other competitors, Sens. John Cornyn And Rick Scottby obtaining the majority support of Republican senators in two rounds of secret voting behind closed doors. Scott was eliminated in the first round and the final vote between Thune and Cornyn was 29-24, according to several people who requested anonymity to discuss the private meeting.

Republicans are replacing McConnell, the party’s longest-serving leader in the Senate, as they prepare to take majority control of the Senate with the 53 seats they won in last week’s elections. It was the first competitive election for the Republican leader in three decades and the first regime change for Senate Republicans since McConnell became GOP leader in 2007.

Thune’s election represents a major shift in the GOP conference in the upper chamber, as many senators were eager to leave McConnell’s long and powerful reign. But it will also be a complicated test for Thune, as he will have to manage an often divided conference on policy, manage Trump’s demands on the legislative branch and secure policy victories for the president as he begins his second term.

“It’s a new day in the United States Senate,” Thune told reporters immediately after his election. He said his majority would work to strengthen border security laws, lower energy costs and repeal regulations it views as burdensome.

“We are excited to reclaim the majority and work with our House colleagues to implement President Trump’s agenda,” Thune said.

As the candidates attempted to convince individual senators, all of their arguments centered on their closeness to Trump. It was a tougher task for Cornyn and Thune, who publicly broke with the former president over his efforts to overturn his defeat in the 2020 presidential election and the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol. At the time, Thune called Trump’s actions “inexcusable.”

In recent months, however, Thune has worked to improve that relationship, visiting Trump at his home in Florida and consulting with him on how to implement the new president’s agenda. Thun told the Associated Press over the summer, he views their potential relationship as a professional one. If they both win their elections, Thune said then, “we have a job to do.”

In making his case, Thune made it clear that he would listen to Trump’s demands. When Trump posted on Sunday the new leader “must agree” To allow him to appoint Cabinet members and others when the Senate is in recess, thereby avoiding confirmation votes, Thune quickly responded in a statement that the Senate must act “quickly and decisively” to put into effect place of the candidates and that “all options are on the table”. to achieve this, including playtime appointments.

Speaking to reporters after his election, Thune noted that “the Senate has a rule of advice and consent in the Constitution” but that he will do everything in his power to get his nominees nominated.

“It remains to be seen how this will happen,” Thune said.

Thune’s victory is all the more extraordinary given that he was elected to the Senate in 2004 – defeating then-Senate Majority Leader. Tom Daschle after arguing during the campaign that Daschle had lost his South Dakota roots during his years leading the Democratic Party. Twenty years later, Thune himself would become majority leader.

A well-liked and respected communicator, Thune was seen as a favorite for much of the year. Like McConnell, he comes from the more traditional wing of the Republican Party.

He is a former chairman of the Senate Commerce Committee and served as Republican whip – no. 2 in party leadership — since 2019. He took over from McConnell for several weeks last year while he was on medical leave, a move that was widely seen as a sort of hearing amid speculation surrounding McConnell’s future.

As he prepared to run for president, Thune spent much of the year campaigning for his colleagues. According to aides, he raised more than $31 million to elect Republicans to the Senate this cycle, including a $4 million transfer from his own campaign accounts to the Senate’s main campaign arm.

The election was difficult for many conference attendees who viewed Thune and Cornyn as similar choices. They are similar on policy, generally voting in line with the conference but sometimes working with Democrats. Cornyn is a longtime member of the Senate Judiciary Committee that made a decision leading role in bipartisan gun legislation two years ago.

But the two men disagreed over whether the leader’s term should be limited – a key demand of some in the conservative wing. Cornyn pushed to push the boundaries, while Thune did not.

Scott, the former Florida governor, was elected to the Senate in 2018 and quickly positioned himself as a foil to McConnell, running against him for party leader in 2022 and aligning himself with the Utah senator . Mike Lee and others who have been very critical of current leaders.

While Thune and Cornyn courted their colleagues one by one throughout the year, Scott was stuck in his own re-election race. He easily defeated Democrat Debbie Mucarsel-Powell by more than 10 points.

In the week since the election, Scott has ramped up his campaign for GOP leader, publicly campaigning as Trump’s closest candidate and winning support from people close to the former and future president, like the billionaire. Elon Musk. But some wonder if this strategy could backfire.

South Dakota Sen. Mike Rounds, Thune’s colleague in his home state, said he preferred the way Thune and Cornyn had “handled the situation one-on-one with everyone,” but that He had also spoken to Scott. “We have three qualified individuals,” he said before the race.

Still, Thune and Cornyn adopted some of Scott’s ideas as they worked to win over voters. Thune told the conference during a candidate forum Tuesday night that he would allow more amendments and improve communications about McConnell’s regime, addressing frequent complaints from that wing of the conference.

McConnell did not specify who he supported, but said after the vote that Thune’s victory was a “clear endorsement of an accomplished leader.”

“The American people elected Republicans to restore stability and order after four years of failure by Washington Democrats,” McConnell said. “John Thune will take the reins with a tremendous opportunity to lead this transformation, and Senate Republicans have his back, ready to take the lead.” to work. »