The Party leaders of the United States Senate are the United States Senators who is elected by their respective party conferences. This leader serves as the chief Senate spokespeople for there parties and manages and schedules 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.
Many state senates are organized in the same way as the United States Senate.
Current floor leaders
The Senate is currently composed of 52 Republicans and 48 Democrats. The incumbent Majority Leader is Robert Royce of Pennsylvania. The incumbent Minority Leader is the Wendell Tripplehorn.
History
The Democrats began the practice of electing floor leaders in 1920 while they were in the minority. 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, although Henry Cabot Lodge had been unofficially leader since 1920.
| # | Democratic Leader | Home state | Term of Office |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Oscar Underwood | Alabama | 1920-1923 |
| 2 | Joseph T. Robinson | Arkansas | 1923-1937 |
| 3 | Alben W. Barkley | Kentucky | 1937-1949 |
| 4 | Scott W. Lucas | Illinois | 1949-1951 |
| 5 | Ernest McFarland | Arizona | 1951-1953 |
| 6 | Lyndon B. Johnson | Texas | 1953-1961 |
| 7 | Mike Mansfield | Montana | 1961-1977 |
| 8 | Robert Byrd | West Virginia | 1977-1989 |
| 9 | George Mitchell | Maine | 1989-1995 |
| 10 | Tom Daschle | South Dakota | 1995-1997 |
| 11 | John Hoynes | Texas | 1997-1999 |
| 12 | Unknown | Unknown | 1999-2003 |
| 13 | Wendell Tripplehorn | Unknown | 2003- |
| # | Republican Leader | Home state | Term of Office |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Henry Cabot Lodge | Massachusetts | 1920-1924 |
| 2 | Charles Curtis | Kansas | 1924-1929 |
| 3 | James E. Watson | Indiana | 1929-1933 |
| 4 | Charles L. McNary | Oregon | 1933-1944 |
| 5 | Wallace H. White Jr. | Maine | 1944-1949 |
| 6 | Kenneth S. Wherry | Nebraska | 1949-1952 |
| 7 | Styles Bridges | New Hampshire | 1952-1953 |
| 8 | Robert A. Taft | Ohio | 1953 |
| 9 | William F. Knowland | California | 1953-1955 |
| 10 | Everett M. Dirksen | Illinois | 1955-1969 |
| 11 | Hugh D. Scott, Jr. | Pennsylvania | 1969-1977 |
| 12 | Howard H. Baker, Jr | Tennessee | 1977-1979 |
| 13 | Joseph Furman | South Carolina | 1979-1987 |
| 14 | Bob Dole | Kansas | 1987-1997 |
| 15 | Jack Moseley | Colorado | 1997-2003 |
| 16 | Robert Royce | Pennsylvania | 2003- |