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The 119th Congress begins tomorrow. Here's what to know for the 2025 session. [1]

['Caitlin Yilek', 'Caitlin Yilek Is A Politics Reporter At Cbsnews.Com', 'Based In Washington', 'D.C. She Previously Worked For The Washington Examiner', 'The Hill', 'Was A Member Of The Paul Miller Washington Reporting Fellowship With The National Press Foundation.']

Date: 2025-01

Washington — The 119th Congress begins Friday with Republicans in full control of the House and Senate for the first time since 2019.

Still, there's the potential for sparks to fly in the House if Republicans revolt 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 flipping the majority in the November elections.

Here's what to know as the new Congress convenes in Washington:

When do the new members of Congress get sworn in?

The new term of Congress, which lasts two years, begins Friday, when House members are expected to be sworn in. But first, they'll have to elect a speaker, which has not come easy for a divided Republican Party in the last two elections to pick their leader.

It took former House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, a California Republican, 15 rounds to win the gavel in 2023, delaying the swearing-in of new members by several days. McCarthy was ousted months later, and it took Republicans three weeks to coalesce behind Johnson. The Louisiana Republican is hoping to continue as speaker, but is facing some opposition within his own party after another messy fight last month over government funding.

The Senate swears in members when it convenes Friday and then moves on to other business.

How does the speaker's election work?

Typically, a member from each party will nominate a candidate for speaker ahead of a vote of all incoming members on the House floor. Those candidates were determined in November, when both parties separately decided who they would support for leadership.

Johnson won the backing of Republicans for another term. Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, a New York Democrat, will be nominated by his party. Members are not required to vote for those candidates and could choose to support someone else or no one.

During the roll call vote, members will state aloud who they favor for speaker. The candidate with the majority of votes cast wins the speakership. If no candidate wins on the first round, the vote is repeated until someone secures the majority.

What is the new balance of power in the House and the Senate?

Republicans flipped control of the Senate in the November elections and will have 53 seats. Democrats, including independents who caucus with them, will control 47.

In the House, Republicans held on to their majority, winning 220 seats. Democrats won 215. But President-elect Donald Trump has tapped two Republican members for positions in his administration, cutting into the party's already narrow margins until special elections are held in the coming months. Rep. Matt Gaetz of Florida has also said he would not take his seat, giving Republicans a 219 to 215 edge.

Johnson will need 218 votes to win the speaker's election if all members are present and voting.

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 can quickly accomplish their goals depends on how unified 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 needed for most legislation in the Senate.

"It's going to take a lot of work to build a consensus among all the Republicans to get it done," Johnson told Fox News on Monday.

Trump has also called for the debt ceiling to be increased, which limits how much the government can borrow to pay its bills. Without an increase, it's likely to complicate Republicans' legislative priorities.

Who are the new House members joining Congress in 2025?

More than 60 new members are joining the House this week. They are:

Yassamin Ansari, a 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

Sheri Biggs, a Republican from South Carolina

Rob Bresnahan, a Republican from Pennsylvania

Janelle Bynum, a Democrat from Oregon

Gil Cisneros Jr., a Democrat from California

Herb Conaway, a Democrat from New Jersey

Jeff Crank, a Republican from Colorado

Maxine Dexter, a Democrat from Oregon

Troy Downing, a Republican from Montana

Sarah Elfreth, a 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, a Democrat from California

Brandon Gill, a Republican from Texas

Laura Gillen, a Democrat from New York

Craig Goldman, a Republican from Texas

Maggie Goodlander, a Democrat from New Hampshire

Adam Gray, a Democrat from California

Abe Hamadeh, a Republican from Arizona

Mike Haridopolos, 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, a Democrat from Texas

Mike Kennedy, a Republican from Utah

Kimberlyn 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, a Democrat from California

Ryan Mackenzie, 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, a Democrat from California

Tim Moore, a Republican from North Carolina

Riley Moore, a Republican from West Virginia

Kelly Morrison, a Democrat from Minnesota

Johnny Olszewski, a Democrat from Maryland

Bob Onder Jr., a Republican from Missouri

Nellie Pou, a Democrat from New Jersey

Emily Randall, a Democrat from Washington

Josh Riley, a Democrat from New York

Luz Rivas, a Democrat from California

Pablo Hernandez Rivera, a Democrat from Puerto Rico (non-voting member)

Derek Schmidt, a Republican from Kansas

Jefferson Shreve, a Republican from Indiana

Lateefah Simon, a Democrat from California

Marlin Stutzman, a Republican from Indiana

Suhas Subramanyam, a 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, a Democrat from California

Who are the new senators joining Congress in 2025?

Ten new senators are joining the upper chamber this year. They include four Democrats and six Republicans.

Angela Alsobrooks, a Democrat from Maryland

Jim Banks, a Republican from Indiana

Lisa Blunt Rochester, a Democrat from 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, a Democrat from Michigan

Two other new senators, Democrats Adam Schiff of California and Andy Kim of New Jersey, replaced their outgoing predecessors early, and were sworn in in December to have an edge on seniority.

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[1] Url: https://www.cbsnews.com/news/new-congress-2025-what-to-know/

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