Senate Republicans are due to choose their leaders on Tuesday, 10 November, with John Thune running unopposed despite the party losing its Senate majority in last week's midterm elections. Seven Republican senators are pushing to delay the vote, arguing that the party should first examine what went wrong.

The closed-door, secret-ballot elections were scheduled for 9am on Tuesday in the Old Senate Chamber. Thune, the South Dakota senator who became Republican leader in early 2025, is expected to win another term and faces no announced opponent. If he is re-elected, he will lead Senate Republicans into the minority when the new Congress begins on 3 January.

Seven senators want more time

Senator Ron Johnson of Wisconsin is leading the push for a delay. He circulated a letter to Senate Republican Conference Chairman Tom Cotton requesting a meeting of the full conference, collecting the five signatures needed to force it. Senators Ted Budd of North Carolina, Rick Scott of Florida, Mike Lee of Utah and John Kennedy of Louisiana signed the letter, according to Axios.

Two other Republicans, Dave McCormick of Pennsylvania and Jim Banks of Indiana, endorsed a delay in their own statements without signing. Johnson described the election result as a stunning defeat and called rushing the vote political malpractice. He told a Washington Examiner reporter on Monday: "If you hold the election, I'll leave the room."

Republicans have lost at least seven Senate seats, with two further races still uncalled. Unresolved contests in Alaska and Mississippi could reduce their numbers further, leaving uncertainty over whether Senators Dan Sullivan and Cindy Hyde-Smith will return next year. Lee said leadership elections should wait until those contests are decided, while McCormick said Republicans should not select their leader until the election's lessons have been digested and debated. Banks said the party should sit down and have a frank conversation about where it fell short.

Thune says the vote will proceed

Thune said on Monday that the leadership elections would proceed as scheduled, although senators could seek a vote to postpone them when they gather on Tuesday morning. He promised a very fulsome, robust conversation about where the party goes from here, adding that the decision would ultimately be made by Republican senators.

Senator James Lankford of Oklahoma said Thune has widespread support and backed holding the elections while incoming Republican senators were already in Washington for orientation. Johnson acknowledged that no alternative candidate had emerged, jokingly asking a reporter: "That's part of our problem, who would want the job?"

Trump leaves the decision to senators

President Donald Trump has stayed out of the leadership question. He praised Thune on Monday as a very fine man, but said the election was up to the Senate. Thune succeeded Kentucky Senator Mitch McConnell as Republican leader in early 2025 and has spent much of his tenure managing relations with Trump, including resisting the president's demands to eliminate the legislative filibuster to pass voting legislation requiring proof of citizenship.

In his first Senate floor remarks since the election, Thune described the result as a tough night and outlined a willingness to negotiate with Democrats while opposing policies Republicans reject. Democrats, who could hold as many as 56 Senate seats next year depending on outstanding results, are conducting their own leadership discussions. Senator Chuck Schumer of New York faces criticism from different wings of his caucus, although he appears to retain broad support after the Democratic victories.