Photo: Kevin Warsh at a Senate hearing, April 2026 / Getty Images
The candidacy of the head of state’s nominee was supported by 54 senators, 45 voted against. This is the smallest gap in voting for the approval of the Central Bank head in history, Bloomberg reported.
The term of office of current Fed chief Jerome Powell expires on May 15. He will later retain a seat on the Board of Governors. The first meeting of the Fed chaired by Warsh is scheduled for June 16-17.
Most of the votes for and against Warsh split along party lines, with only one Democrat, a senator from Pennsylvania, supporting his election. CNN calls it “the most partisan vote on a Fed chief nominee” in history.
Warsh for this post in March was proposed personally by US President Donald Trump. He is considered loyal enough to the American leader, who demanded that the Fed lower interest rates.
However, Warsh takes office against the backdrop of increasing inflationary pressures due to the war between the US and Israel with Iran – investors expect him to leave the benchmark interest rate unchanged or even raise it.
Earlier, Trump repeatedly criticized Powell, who served as Fed chief for eight years, for refusing to lower the interest rate.
