The 2024 election cycle has ended, with Republicans holding control of all three branches of government. The Washington Examiner interviewed over two dozen new members as they prepare to take office in January. Part 1 of Capitol’s new crop will introduce the new members of the 119th Congress.
Capitol Hill will be awash with fresh faces come January after a surge of retirements ahead of the 2024 election cycle paved the way for a wave of newly elected members.
Dozens of House seats were left open due to members running for higher office or, in some cases, the death of an incumbent. But the 119th Congress’s incoming members, made up of businessmen, state lawmakers, former administration officials, and even a pastor, are looking to turn a new chapter in the nation’s Capitol.
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The 118th Congress was ridiculed by Republicans and Democrats alike for being chaotic, with the session only passing 34 bills in its first year. Republican infighting in the House marred much of the session, with the historic ousting of former House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) from his position, and the subsequent weekslong race to replace him setting the tone for distrust and unpredictability.
With House Republicans holding their majority in the lower chamber, voters will be watching to see if the 119th Congress succumbs to similar infighting or, if with the trifecta, the party will sing from the same hymn sheet after the GOP flipped the Senate and President-elect Donald Trump won the White House.
Rep.-elect Mark Harris (R-NC), a pastor of 35 years, said the Republican conference is a “very united front” as the party moves “forward into this next chapter.”
“It’s important right now for all of us to work together in this Congress. It’s one of the few times where you have the trifecta of the White House, the U.S. House, and the United States Senate,” Harris said.
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Rep.-elect Pat Harrigan (R-NC) similarly expressed that he feels the GOP conference is “on the same page,” saying he thinks the party is “prepped for a historic kickoff to 2025.”
“I think we just have to deliver right. If you want to change a reputation, you just have to change the behavior. And ultimately, as far as the American people are concerned, we just have to change the outcomes,” Harrington said.
On the other side of the aisle, freshman Democrats — who had wanted to enter into a Democratic majority — are optimistic they will be able to work across the aisle to advance their legislative goals even as the party continues to sift through the fallout of the 2024 elections.
Rep.-elect Julie Johnson (D-TX), the first LGBT candidate to hold a congressional office in Texas, explained to the Washington Examiner that she’s already working to find Republican allies.
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“My whole legislative service has been in the minority party, and it’s about — you have to work hard. You have to work harder,” Johnson said. “You have to really build relationships and really fine-tune the policy positions that you want to try to move in the process and find Republican allies, and I’m already working on that.”
She continued, “We’ve already met some folks that I think we can work with, and we’re having conversations about healthcare.”
Rep.-elect Suhas Subramanyam (D-VA), who is replacing retiring Rep. Jennifer Wexton (D-VA), echoed Johnson, citing his work as a state senator in Virginia under Gov. Glenn Youngkin (R-VA).
“As a state senator, I work with a Republican governor right now, passed several bills that he signed, and when I was in the state House, I also was serving in the minority, and so I worked with the Republican majority on trying to pass some of our priorities for my region,” he told the Washington Examiner. “And so I’m going to continue to do some of that work. And I’ll work with the Trump administration. I’ll work with Republicans in Congress, whoever I need to work with to help my region.”
Many in the freshman class are hopeful their prior experience in statewide office, or involvement in previous administrations, will aid them in their terms and help them land spots on coveted committees.
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Rep.-elect Derek Schmidt (R-KS), who served as Kansas’s attorney general for 12 years and also previously worked as a staffer before entering the state’s Senate, is hoping to serve on the Armed Services Committee or the Judiciary Committee.
“I have sort of the ‘put me in coach. I’m a team player,’ mentality,” Schmidt said. “Having said that, I hope I can serve on the Armed Services Committee … I have two Army divisions and a tanker base in my House district. It’s really a gap in our delegation from Kansas. We don’t have anybody on the authorizing committee in either the House or the Senate for Armed Services,” Schmidt explained, saying he would also be “thrilled” to serve on Judiciary.
He continued, “I think I bring something of a unique voice in some of those issues.”
However, for some members of the 119th Congress, this will be their first foray into elected office.
Rep.-elect Rob Bresnahan (R-PA), a first-time candidate who ousted Rep. Matt Cartwright (D-PA), told the Washington Examiner that he has never been one to sit on the “sidelines.”
“I love my country. I love the people. I love northeastern Pennsylvania. I always tried to help the right candidates that would run for the right reasons. I felt the country wasn’t going in the right direction. I’ve always been a person to roll up my sleeves and do things myself,” said Bresnahan, who is the CEO and president of his family’s construction company, Kuharchik Construction.
And Bresnahan isn’t the only freshman member new to politics, with Rep.-elect Jeff Hurd (R-CO), from Colorado’s 3rd District, quipping he “hadn’t even run for dog catcher” before his congressional bid.
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“I decided to run for Congress because I felt like rural Colorado, which is most of my district, is being left behind,” Hurd told the Washington Examiner.
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The Colorado Republican is replacing Rep. Lauren Boebert (R-CO), who left the competitive 3rd District to keep it in GOP hands and remain in Congress herself. Boebert won her race in Colorado’s redder 4th District, which was an open seat after former GOP Rep. Ken Buck retired.
The 119th session of Congress will begin on Jan. 3, 2025, with Inauguration Day on Jan. 20.
Cami Mondeaux contributed to this report.
