Washington’s political circus is preparing for another run, and Democrats are already lining up the acts they intend to put on when they take control of Congress in January.
With Democrats set to hold majorities in both chambers following their sweeping midterm victories, a number of prominent lawmakers are poised to take over powerful committees. Their early promises suggest the new Congress will bring aggressive investigations into the Trump administration, renewed scrutiny of immigration enforcement, and a fresh push for progressive economic policies.
Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) is expected to take the gavel of the Senate Banking Committee, putting one of Wall Street’s most persistent critics in charge of a panel with broad authority over the financial industry. Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) is expected to lead the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee, while Ed Markey (D-MA) is positioned to take over the Senate Small Business Committee.
In the House, Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-MD) is the likely next chairman of the Judiciary Committee, Rep. Bennie Thompson (D-MS) is seeking the Homeland Security gavel, Rep. Robert Garcia (D-CA) is expected to take the chair in the Oversight Committee, and Rep. Maxine Waters (D-CA) is the front-runner to lead Financial Services. Far-left Rep. Pramila Jayapal (D-WA), meanwhile, is positioned to chair the Judiciary subcommittee overseeing immigration enforcement.
The lineup would put some of the party’s most outspoken lefties in positions to shape congressional investigations and legislation — and give Democrats a collection of powerful platforms from which to challenge President Donald Trump.
Warren’s expected elevation is already drawing attention on Wall Street. After nearly two decades of criticizing financial institutions, the Massachusetts senator will have the subpoena power and investigative authority of a committee chair to pursue an agenda she has long desired.
Warren has described private-equity takeovers as “legal looting,” called for criminal investigations into banking executives, and pushed legislation that would expose private-equity firms to greater liability. She has also targeted cryptocurrency companies and prediction markets, and pledged to investigate bankers’ relationships with convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein and their dealings with the Trump administration.
Her early priorities are expected to include reviving her Stop Wall Street Looting Act, examining allegations of insider trading in prediction markets, and investigating consumer protections in the cryptocurrency industry.
“It’s hard to imagine it’s good news for these industries,” former Sen. Pat Toomey (R-PA), a former ranking member of the Banking Committee, said of Warren’s expected chairmanship.
Warren has nevertheless said she intends to work with Republicans where their interests overlap, including on credit-card fees and housing policy. She will also have allies in Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), who is expected to oversee the Senate Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations, and Waters, whose anticipated House Financial Services chairmanship could put both chambers on a similar investigative track.
Markey, meanwhile, has offered a preview of the ideological direction he wants Democrats to take. At an August affordability forum in Massachusetts alongside Warren, the senator now set to be the chief advocate for small business in the Senate, repeatedly embraced socialism as a description of the government programs he wants to expand.
“Give us more of that socialism,” Markey declared while advocating for expanded education access and federal subsidies for clean energy. Markey also called for greater government investment in health care and criticized the Trump administration’s spending priorities.
Sanders’ expected chairmanship of HELP would put the self-described democratic socialist in charge of a committee overseeing health care, education, labor, and other major domestic policy issues. The Vermont independent has spent years advocating Medicare for All, stronger labor protections, and expanded federal spending on social programs.
In the House, Raskin could become one of the most consequential Democratic antagonists of the Trump administration. The Maryland congressman, a constitutional scholar and outspoken Trump critic, has said Democrats have an “anti-corruption mandate” following their election victories.
Raskin has identified government corruption, immigration enforcement, and restoring access to health care as priorities for the Judiciary Committee. He has also made clear that impeachment remains an option, though he says Democrats should not treat it as an automatic response to every dispute with the administration.
“Madison stated that this is a remedy that is for great and serious crimes against the republic,” Raskin told Capital News Service. “It’s not a fetish for us.” He also pledged to scrutinize Immigration and Customs Enforcement, saying Democrats want to remove agents’ masks, turn on their cameras, and reimpose what he described as constitutional limits on the agency.
The likely House Oversight Committee Chairman, Robert Garcia was much less tactful. On election night, after it became apparent that Democrats would take control of the House, he posted a two word warning to X: “LAWYER UP.”
Rep. Bennie Thompson, who has led Democrats on the House Homeland Security Committee since 2005, is seeking to return to the chairmanship. In a letter to colleagues, the Mississippi Democrat promised to investigate federal spending on immigration enforcement and use his subpoena authority to compel testimony from border czar Tom Homan and new White House Chief of Staff Stephen Miller. “The next two years will decide whether [the Department of Homeland Security] answers to the Constitution and to Congress,” Thompson wrote.
Thompson also pledged to scrutinize contracts awarded to ICE and investigate what he called misconduct within the department. Jayapal, meanwhile, is positioned to take over the Judiciary subcommittee responsible for immigration integrity, security, and enforcement, giving another vocal leftist a direct role in shaping the party’s approach to immigration policy.
Waters’ expected leadership of House Financial Services would round out a powerful financial oversight operation alongside Warren and Blumenthal. Waters has long been a vocal critic of the financial industry and is expected to join Warren in scrutinizing cryptocurrency companies and their connections to Trump allies.
Even before the new Congress convenes, the Democrats’ leadership itself is facing internal pressure. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY), who is expected to become majority leader, is confronting a revolt from several incoming Democratic senators who have said they will not support his continued leadership or have called for a new direction.
Senator-elect Adam Hamilton (D-KS) has explicitly said he will not support Schumer, while Senator-elect Troy Jackson (D-ME) said he told Schumer he would support someone else. Senator-elect Abdul El-Sayed (D-MI) has thrown his support behind Sen. Chris Van Hollen (D-MD), should Van Hollen seek the post. Senator-elect Juliana Stratton (D-IL) has also said she will not support Schumer, while Senator-elect Peggy Flanagan (D-MN) has called for new leadership. Others, including Senator-elect James Talarico (D-TX), have withheld a commitment.
Schumer has brushed off the opposition, declaring, “I’ll be re-elected as majority leader.” He remains the favorite, with no declared challenger, but the internal dissent underscores the pressure for generational change after Democrats’ electoral gains.
House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY), meanwhile, is also facing criticism from the party’s left flank as he prepares to become speaker. Left-wing activists have urged Democrats to reject his leadership, and House members have been inundated with calls and emails demanding they oppose his speakership.
However, Jeffries appears far more secure than Schumer since lawmakers across the caucus continue to describe him as the overwhelming favorite and vocal opposition is coming exclusively from outside activists. The grassroots pressure may complicate his effort to manage an increasingly leftist caucus, but it has yet to translate into a serious threat to his hold on the gavel.
The committee assignments are not formally settled, and Democratic lawmakers will still have to finalize their leadership choices. But the early pledges offer a preview of what the new majority intends to prioritize: investigations into the Trump administration, aggressive oversight of immigration enforcement, and a hard-left economic agenda.
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