With results still coming in, Democrats have won control of both the U.S. House of Representatives and the Senate, according to the Associated Press. In the House, Democrats appear on track for a noticeably larger majority than the narrow one Republicans held in the 119th Congress. In the Senate, Democrats have won a solid majority with some races still uncalled, but they will still fall short of the 60 votes needed to overcome a filibuster.
These results directly shape the leadership races for both the House Education and Workforce Committee and the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee. Democrats will chair both committees, and Republicans will choose a ranking member for each. A further analysis of potential leadership outcomes is below.
House Education and Workforce/Labor Committee
Three Democrats are running to lead the committee, which the new majority will almost certainly rename the House Education and Labor Committee in the 120th Congress. The candidates are Rep. Bobby Scott (D-VA), who has led committee Democrats since 2015; Rep. Jahana Hayes (D-CT), who joined the committee in 2019; and Rep. Suzanne Bonamici (D-OR), who joined the committee in 2013 and currently serves as ranking member of the Early Childhood, Elementary, and Secondary Education Subcommittee. All three won reelection and have sent “Dear Colleague” letters to House Democrats (Scott, Hayes, Bonamici) making the case for their candidacies and outlining the issues they would prioritize as chair.
The House Democratic Steering and Policy Committee recommends nominees to chair most standing committees, including Education and Labor, and the full Democratic Caucus then votes on each nominee by secret ballot. Caucus rules direct the Steering and Policy Committee to weigh merit, length of service on the committee, commitment to the Democratic agenda, and the diversity of the caucus. Seniority has traditionally carried substantial weight, but contested races have become more common. In December 2024, several younger lawmakers challenged longer-serving colleagues for top committee posts, and some of those challengers won. It is too early to say who will emerge as the top Democrat on Education and Labor.
Current Education and Workforce Committee Chair Tim Walberg (R-MI) has served on the committee since returning to Congress in 2011, but the 119th Congress marks his first term leading committee Republicans. No other Republican has announced a bid for the top spot, so Walberg will likely serve as ranking member in the 120th Congress. Rep. Burgess Owens (R-UT) challenged him for the gavel two years ago, so a late bid is possible, and the House Republican Steering Committee will make the final call, subject to ratification by the full conference.
Senate HELP Committee
Democrats will also lead the Senate HELP Committee in the 120th Congress. Current Ranking Member Bernie Sanders (I-VT), who chaired the committee in the 118th Congress, will likely reclaim the gavel.
The Republican side is far less settled. HELP Chair Bill Cassidy (R-LA) lost his primary in May 2026 and will leave the Senate when his term ends in January, so HELP Republicans will choose a new leader for the first time since 2023.
The Senate Republican Committee on Committees handles committee assignments. At the start of each Congress, the Republican members of each standing committee then select their chair or ranking member, and the full Republican Conference ratifies or rejects that choice by secret ballot. Seniority usually decides who leads, but conference rules state that the pick need not be the most senior member. Conference rules also bar a senator from serving as chair or ranking member of more than one full committee at a time, so senior Republicans who already lead another committee must choose between the two.
The current Republican members of HELP, in order of committee seniority, are:
- Bill Cassidy, M.D. (LA), chair: lost primary
- Rand Paul, M.D. (KY): chairs Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee
- Susan Collins (ME): lost reelection
- Lisa Murkowski (AK): chairs Indian Affairs Committee
- Roger Marshall, M.D. (KS): lost reelection
- Tim Scott (SC): chairs Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs Committee
- Josh Hawley (MO)
- Tommy Tuberville (AL): elected Governor of Alabama
- Jim Banks (IN)
- Jon Husted (OH): lost reelection
- Ashley Moody (FL)
- Alan Armstrong (OK): appointed in March 2026 after Markwayne Mullin left to become Secretary of Homeland Security; leaving the Senate in January
With Cassidy leaving at the end of the 119th Congress, six of the 12 current HELP Republicans will not return next year, and Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY) becomes the most senior Republican on the committee. Paul chairs the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee (HSGAC) and has not said publicly whether he wants to lead HELP. He chose HSGAC over HELP when Republicans took the majority in 2025, but minority status changes that calculation, because the HSGAC ranking member lacks the subpoena authority the chair holds.
If Paul stays at HSGAC, Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) becomes the pivotal figure. Sen. Susan Collins (R-ME), who sits between them in seniority, lost her reelection bid to Democrat Troy Jackson. Collins’ defeat also leaves Murkowski as the senior returning Republican on the Appropriations Committee. Murkowski can choose among leading Appropriations Republicans, leading HELP Republicans, or remaining the top Republican on Indian Affairs. Conference rules require her to pick one.
If Murkowski goes elsewhere, the succession moves quickly down the roster. Sen. Roger Marshall (R-KS), who had expressed sustained interest in the HELP gavel, lost his race. Assuming Sen. Tim Scott (R-SC) stays atop the Republican side of the Banking Committee, Sen. Josh Hawley (R-MO) becomes the next available Republican.
Next Steps
Both parties will settle leadership of the House Education and Labor Committee and the Senate HELP Committee over the next two months, before the 120th Congress convenes on January 3, 2027. CUPA-HR will keep members informed as those decisions come in.