Senate Democratic Caucus
The Democratic Caucus of the United States Senate, sometimes referred to as the Democratic Conference, is the formal organization of all senators who are part of the Democratic Party in the United States Senate. For the makeup of the 118th Congress, the caucus additionally includes four independent senators (Bernie Sanders of Vermont, Angus King of Maine, Kyrsten Sinema of Arizona, and Joe Manchin of West Virginia) who caucus with the Democrats, bringing the current total to 51 members. The central organizational front for Democrats in the Senate, its primary function is communicating the party's message to all of its members under a single banner. The present chair of the Senate Democratic Caucus is Chuck Schumer of New York.
Senate Democratic Caucus
Chuck Schumer (NY)
Dick Durbin (IL)
Mark Warner (VA)
Elizabeth Warren (MA)
Tammy Baldwin (WI)
Effective with the start of the 118th Congress, the conference leadership is as follows:
History[edit]
The conference was formally organized on March 6, 1903, electing a chair to preside over its members and a secretary to keep minutes. Until that time, this caucus was often disorganized, philosophically divided and had neither firm written rules of governance nor a clear mission.
After the victory of Democrats in the midterm elections of 2006, an overwhelming majority in the conference wanted to reward Chuck Schumer, then the chair of the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee, with a position in the leadership hierarchy. In response, then-Democratic Leader Harry Reid created the position of vice-chair when Democrats formally took control in 2007.[1] Schumer ascended to Reid's position following his retirement after the 2016 elections. The position was then split, with one co-chair awarded to Mark Warner and the other awarded to Elizabeth Warren.