Schumer's loss of the majority highlights changes for local members of Congress (2025)

WASHINGTON – The nation’s most powerful senator will no longer be visiting all 62 counties in New York every year.

That’s because Sen. Charles E. Schumer, D-N.Y., is no longer the most powerful senator, no longer Senate majority leader. As of Friday, Sen. John Thune, Republican of South Dakota, assumed those roles.

Of course, Schumer still plans on visiting all 62 New York counties annually. But after four years of leading the Senate Democratic majority, Schumer now serves as minority leader.

Schumer's loss of the majority highlights changes for local members of Congress (1)

Such are the consequences of the 2024 election that saw Republicans come to power in the Senate while reclaiming the White House for Donald Trump, who will be sworn in again as president on Jan. 20.

The Senate power shift highlighted what’s shaping up as a year of change for federal lawmakers who represent Western New York – especially for Schumer and Rep. Nick Langworthy, a Republican who will take on a new role on the House’s most powerful committee.

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As the 119th Congress begins work, here’s a more detailed look at how it’s shaping up for New York’s two U.S. senators and three House members:

Schumer’s minority

After four years in which he helped Democrats pass landmark laws boosting the nation’s infrastructure and bolstering its tech sector, Schumer returns to the minority leader position he held from 2017 to 2021. Discussing the power shift on the Senate floor on Friday, he sounded like he hopes to play a conciliatory role.

Offering Thune some “unsolicited advice,” Schumer urged Thune to adopt the same sort of bipartisan tone that allowed the chamber to come together on the infrastructure bill and the CHIPS and Science Act, which aims to “reshore” the microchip industry while creating tech hubs across the country, including one between Buffalo and Syracuse.

“If we look back at all the bills we passed in 2021 and 2022, most of them originated in the Senate, because both parties found ways to reach across the aisle,” Schumer said. “I want to work with the new Republican leader to keep that bipartisan streak going in the new year. I don’t expect we’ll agree on everything or even many things, but there are still opportunities to improve the lives of the American people, if we’re willing to work together.”

Schumer listed affordable housing, higher wages, child care, abortion rights, small business promotion and the fight against inflation as his party’s priorities.

“Democrats stand ready to make lives better for the American people,” Schumer said. “We want to work with anyone, and hold the line whenever necessary, to achieve that goal.”

Langworthy’s new committee

Langworthy, whose district contains a sliver of Niagara County, including his home in Pendleton, as well as much of rural Erie County and the Southern Tier, recently won appointment to the House Energy and Commerce Committee. That powerful panel oversees everything from the energy supply to health care to telecommunications.

“When you look at all of the things that are going to be at the forefront of the Trump agenda, this gives me a seat at the table,” Langworthy said.

In an interview on Friday, he said he plans to use his spot on the committee to push for “American energy dominance.” Pipeline permitting reform and expanding energy exploration will be key Republican priorities, he said.

Schumer's loss of the majority highlights changes for local members of Congress (3)

Long a supporter of the controversial natural gas extraction practice called fracking, Langworthy said he and the Trump administration will also explore whether there is any “work-around strategy” to allow more drilling in the gas-rich Southern Tier, despite the state’s fracking ban.

Langworthy said his seat on Energy and Commerce could also help him find a way to help New York’s struggling rural hospitals.

“Our hospitals, even in the Buffalo area, are severely strained financially coming out of Covid, which doesn’t seem to make sense,” he said. “I mean, the New York City hospitals are flush with cash.”

Langworthy will be the only New York Republican on Energy and Commerce and the first to serve on the committee since Rep. Chris Collins, who was removed from the panel after he was charged with felony insider trading in 2018.

Langworthy will also continue to serve on the House Oversight Committee, and he said he hopes to also remain on the Rules Committee, the powerful panel that sets the agenda on the House floor.

Gillibrand’s growing role

Elected in November to a third full term, Sen. Kirsten E. Gillibrand returns to Washington with the increasing responsibilities that come with a long Senate tenure.

Kennedy ascends in congressional leadership – and Gillibrand may, too

Kennedy, a Buffalo Democrat who just won his first full term, has been named one of two regional Democratic whips for New York State – an unusual move for someone with less than a year's experience in Congress.

For the first time, she will serve on the Senate Appropriations Committee, the important panel that helps decide how the federal government spends taxpayer money.

“This role is an incredible opportunity to ensure that federal dollars are used to make life better for Americans, support hardworking families, and address the pressing challenges faced by our nation at home and abroad,” Gillibrand said in a statement.

Gillibrand also became the ranking member – that is, the top Democrat – on the Senate Aging Committee, where she has served since joining the Senate in 2009.

“I plan to continue my work fighting to bring down the cost of prescription drugs, protecting Social Security and Medicare, guarding against financial scams, and ensuring that every American can age with dignity and financial security,” she said.

There’s still no word on whether Schumer and Gillibrand’s other Democratic colleagues will choose her to chair the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee, a role she volunteered for late last year.

Kennedy moving up

Rep. Tim Kennedy, a Buffalo Democrat, was elected to his first full term in Congress in November – but he’s already showing himself to be something of a favorite of the Democratic leadership.

Just weeks after Kennedy was named a regional whip for Democratic lawmakers from New York State, House Democratic Caucus Chair Pete Aguilar appointed him to the Committee on Caucus Rules.

“I’m grateful to have earned the trust of my House Democratic leadership to be part of the committee that helps Democrats promote diversity and unity within its ranks, particularly as we chart our way forward to flipping the House,” Kennedy said, referencing the possibility that Democrats could regain control of the chamber in the 2026 election.

In an interview, Kennedy said his caucus role, as well as his role as a regional whip, will give him the opportunity to build relationships with his colleagues.

“It’s going to pay dividends when it comes to building support for legislation that supports and uplifts Western New Yorkers,” he said.

Kennedy said his priorities include ensuring federal funding for Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center, landing a new veterans hospital for Buffalo and making sure the region gets a fair share of federal infrastructure dollars.

Tenney’s tax role

Rep. Claudia Tenney, who won another term serving a district that stretches from Niagara County to Watertown, will continue serving on the tax-writing Ways and Means Committee. That means she will have a key role as the new Republican Congress works on a tax bill that’s a follow-up to the one passed in 2017, which expires at the end this year.

Noting that the expiration of that tax legislation could mean a major tax hike for many of her constituents, Tenney said: “My priority is to ensure the renewal of the Trump tax cuts.”

In a statement, Tenney said her other priorities will include border security, controlling inflation and supporting law enforcement.

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Schumer's loss of the majority highlights changes for local members of Congress (2025)

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