Cornyn Picked to Be Next Senate Majority Whip

U.S. Sen. John Cornyn of Texas will be the Senate's next majority whip, Republicans in the upper chamber decided in a Thursday morning vote.

Cornyn, who will assume the post in January when the Senate convenes with a new Republican majority, will be the first Texan to serve as Senate majority whip since Democrat Lyndon Johnson did so from 1951-1953, according to the U.S. Senate website. The majority whip is the chamber’s second-in-command and is tasked with counting votes and helping communicate the majority leader’s position.

“I’m humbled to have been chosen by my colleagues to help lead the new majority in the U.S. Senate, and I pledge that those fundamental Texas values of personal liberty and limited government will continue to be my guide,” Cornyn said in a statement.

Cornyn has held the position of Senate minority whip since 2013. Republicans won control of the Senate after this month's elections. At a meeting of Senate Republicans on Tuesday, Sen. Patrick Toomey of Pennsylvania nominated Cornyn to remain as whip, according to a leadership aide with knowledge of the meeting. Sen. Susan Collins of Maine seconded the nomination. Republicans also picked Mitch McConnell of Kentucky to be Senate majority leader.

“After years of gridlock and dysfunction in the Senate, the work before us is considerable, but Republicans approach this opportunity with determination, with humility, and above all with a firm commitment to address the top priorities of the American people,” Cornyn said.