Tuesday’s election will bring a significant change to the leadership in Washington D.C., with Republicans taking over leadership of the Senate and former President Trump being re-elected President. As of late Wednesday evening, it appears Republicans will remain in control of the House of Representatives, albeit with a very small majority. Leadership elections over the next couple of months will determine if Chairman Thompson (PA) and Ranking Member Scott (GA) will continue to lead the House Committee on Agriculture. Of the 29 Republican members currently on the committee, only 10 were around to vote on the 2018 Farm Bill (green represents they voted for the 2018 Farm Bill). Eight of 25 Democrat members were around to vote on the 2018 Farm Bill. So, only 18 of 54 members of the committee were around to experience the process and vote for the last farm bill. Most of the current Republican and Democrat members were re-elected on Tuesday with the exceptions of Republican Marc Molinaro (NY) and Democrats Abigail Spanberger (VA) and Elissa Slotkin (MI) who both left to seek other offices.
There is more experience on the Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition and Forestry as 8 of 12 Democrats and 8 of 11 Republicans were around to work on the 2018 Farm Bill, although Senator Grassley (IA) voted against the bill (indicated in red). After Tuesday’s election, it is presumed that Senator Boozman (AR) will become Chairman, and the Democrats will select a new ranking member as Chairwoman Stabenow is set to retire at the end of the year. In terms of departures, Senator Braun (IN) is leaving to become the Governor of Indiana, and Senator Brown (OH) was defeated.
What does this mean going forward for the next farm bill? While the House and Senate differ in terms of experience, there should be plenty of motivated and experienced leaders in both the House and Senate to push the farm bill through whether it be before the end of the year or shortly into next year. After all, the need for a better safety net is currently being felt across the entire country.
House Ag Committee
Senate Ag Committee
Outlaw, Joe, and Bart L. Fischer. “Election Impacts on Current Ag Committee Members.” Southern Ag Today 4(45.4). November 7, 2024. Permalink
