Kevin Warsh confirmed chair 54-45

Kevin Warsh was confirmed by the Senate on May 13 as chair of the Federal Reserve, giving President Donald Trump his pick to lead the U.S. central bank for a four-year term. The chamber approved the nomination, PN855-1, by a 54-45 vote at 1:59 p.m., according to the Senate's roll-call record. (senate.gov) Warsh had already been confirmed on May 12 to a 14-year term as a member of the Board of Governors, clearing the statutory requirement that the chair be chosen from among sitting board members. The confirmation installs a former Fed governor and Morgan Stanley banker at the top of the central bank as officials prepare for the next stretch of interest-rate decisions. (federalreserve.gov) ### How narrow was the Senate vote? The Senate record shows 54 senators voted yes, 45 voted no and one senator did not vote. The official tally was published in Vote No. 120 for the 119th Congress, 2nd Session. The vote drew support from most Republicans and a small number of Democrats. The Senate roll call lists Democratic Senator John Fetterman of Pennsylvania voting yes, while Senator Kirsten Gillibrand of New York was marked not voting. ### What job was Warsh confirmed to hold? (senate.gov) The nomination confirmed on May 13 was for Warsh "to be Chairman of the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System for a term of four years," according to the Senate record. A separate Senate listing of civilian nominations shows that chair nomination as PN855-1. (senate.gov) Federal Reserve rules posted on the board's website say the chair, vice chair and vice chair for supervision are nominated by the president from among the board's members and confirmed by the Senate. The same page says those leadership posts carry four-year terms, while governors serve longer statutory terms that end on fixed dates. (senate.gov) ### How did Warsh get to this point? Trump nominated Warsh to serve both as chair and as a member of the Board of Governors, according to the Congressional Record entry published March 4. The Senate Banking Committee held a nomination hearing on April 21 and later scheduled an executive session on April 29 to vote on his nomination. (senate.gov) Tim Scott, the Republican chairman of the Senate Banking Committee, said at the April 21 hearing that Warsh's prior service as a Federal Reserve governor during the financial crisis was a key qualification. (federalreserve.gov) Elizabeth Warren, the panel's top Democrat, urged senators to oppose him ahead of the final floor vote, calling the nomination "Trump's Fed takeover" in a committee statement published May 13. ### What does this change at the Fed right now? The Federal Reserve's website says the chair leads the Board of Governors and that the Federal Open Market Committee holds eight regularly scheduled meetings each year. (congress.gov) The next scheduled policy milestone on the Fed calendar is May 20, when minutes from the April 28-29 FOMC meeting are due for release. At the April 28-29 meeting, the Fed left its policy setting unchanged, according to the meeting materials and implementation note released April 29. The board voted unanimously to maintain the interest rate paid on reserve balances at 3.65%, effective April 30, the implementation note said. (banking.senate.gov) ### Where did the talk of an "8-4 split" come from? The March 17-18 FOMC minutes released on April 8 describe market expectations, inflation concerns tied to higher energy prices and debate over the policy path, but the excerpt publicly available through the Fed's minutes page does not show an "8-4" vote tally. (federalreserve.gov) The April 29 implementation note says the Board of Governors voted unanimously on the reserve-balances rate tied to that meeting's policy stance. The Fed's calendar page says minutes from the April 28-29 meeting will be released on May 20. That publication is the next official document likely to show how participants divided in the discussion and vote, if there were dissents. (federalreserve.gov) May 20 is the next date traders, lawmakers and Fed watchers can mark on the calendar. The release of the April 28-29 minutes will be followed by the Fed's next scheduled policy meeting later in the year under the committee roster listed on the central bank's 2026 FOMC pages. (federalreserve.gov 1) (federalreserve.gov 2)