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John Thune Elected Senate Majority Leader

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Senate Minority Whip John Thune was elected as GOP leader, capping a nine-month race to succeed Mitch McConnell, Punchbowl News reports.

Thune edged out Sens. John Cornyn and Rick Scott, and will serve as majority leader in the 119th Congress.

Scott was eliminated on the first ballot. And Thune beat Cornyn 29-24 on the second ballot.

New York Times: “In elevating Mr. Thune, 63, G.O.P. senators turned to a traditional Republican in the mold of Mr. McConnell, and rejected a challenger more aligned with President-elect Donald Trump’s Make America Great Again movement.”

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goddard-bw-snapshotTaegan Goddard is the founder of Political Wire, one of the earliest and most influential political web sites. He also runs Political Job Hunt, Electoral Vote Map and the Political Dictionary.

Goddard spent more than a decade as managing director and chief operating officer of a prominent investment firm in New York City. Previously, he was a policy adviser to a U.S. Senator and Governor.

Goddard is also co-author of You Won - Now What? (Scribner, 1998), a political management book hailed by prominent journalists and politicians from both parties. In addition, Goddard's essays on politics and public policy have appeared in dozens of newspapers across the country.

Goddard earned degrees from Vassar College and Harvard University. He lives in New York with his wife and three sons.

Goddard is the owner of Goddard Media LLC.

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