Senate Minority Leader Charles E. Schumer announced Thursday that all 10 Democrats on the Judiciary Committee will retain their seats in the incoming Congress — including Sen. Kamala Harris.
The Californian was in danger of being ousted as the most junior member of the committee after Democrats lost seats in last month’s elections. Those losses mean either the GOP adds new seats or Democrats would have to shed members from panels.
But Ms. Harris has become a high-profile member of the committee, along with second most junior lawmaker, Sen. Cory Booker. They are also the only two black members of the panel, and they were added in January after Democrats captured a Senate seat in Alabama’s special election last year, and after Sen. Al Franken, a member of the committee, resigned from Congress.
The current breakdown of the committee is 11-10, with the GOP holding only a one-seat advantage.
Mr. Schumer’s announcement means Republicans are likely to add another seat to their side, to bring the ratio to 12-10, though they have yet to announce their members.
Sen. Lindsey Graham, South Carolina Republican, is expected to become chairman after Chuck Grassley, Iowa Republican, gives up the gavel to take the helm at the Finance Committee.
Staying on the committee was extremely important to Ms. Harris, who previously served as attorney general of California and made headlines for her questioning of then-Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh during his confirmation hearings.
• Alex Swoyer can be reached at aswoyer@washingtontimes.com.
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