Joint Congressional Committee on Inaugural Ceremonies: History, Membership, and Inaugural Activities

Updated January 30, 2025

Congressional Research Service

https://crsreports.congress.gov

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Congressional Research Service

SUMMARY

Joint Congressional Committee on Inaugural Ceremonies: History, Membership, and Inaugural Activities

Every four years, at noon on January 20, the President-elect is scheduled to be sworn in as President of the United States. The year before the inauguration, Congress establishes the Joint Congressional Committee on Inaugural Ceremonies. The Joint Inaugural Committee is responsible for the planning and execution of the swearing-in ceremony and hosting an inaugural luncheon for the President and Vice President at the U.S. Capitol. In recent years, the inaugural ceremony has been held at the U.S. Capitol, with the swearing-in ceremony on the West Front Steps and special events traditionally held in the Rotunda and Emancipation Hall of the Capitol Visitor Center. For 2025, the inaugural ceremony was held in the Capitol Rotunda due to cold temperatures in Washington, DC.

The tradition of authorizing a Joint Inaugural Committee began in 1901 for the inauguration of President William McKinley. At that time, the House and Senate authorized that inaugural expenses be paid by the Clerk of the House of Representatives and the Secretary of the Senate and created a committee of three Representatives and three Senators appointed by the President pro tempore of the Senate and the Speaker of the House. Since 1901, the Joint Inaugural Committee has been authorized quadrennially.

On May 6, 2024, Congress authorized the Joint Congressional Committee on Inaugural Ceremonies (JCCIC) for the 2025 inauguration (S.Con.Res. 34, 118^th Congress). The concurrent resolution established the Joint Inaugural Committee, consisting of three Senators, appointed by the President of the Senate, and three Representatives, appointed by the Speaker of the House. On January 3, 2025, Congress reauthorized the JCCIC for the 2025 inauguration (S.Con.Res. 1, 119^th Congress).

For the 2025 inauguration, the appointed Senators were Amy Klobuchar, chair of the Senate Committee on Rules and Administration in the 118^th Congress; Chuck Schumer, Senate majority leader in the 118^th Congress; and Deb Fischer, ranking member of the Senate Committee on Rules and Administration in the 118^th Congress. In the House, the appointed Representatives were Speaker of the House Mike Johnson, Majority Leader Steve Scalise, and Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries. Also on May 6, 2024, Congress authorized the JCCIC to use the Rotunda and Emancipation Hall for inaugural- related activities (S.Con.Res. 35, 118^th Congress). Congress reauthorized the JCCIC’s authority to use the Capitol Rotunda and Emancipation Hall for inaugural-related activities for the 119^th Congress on January 3, 2025 (S.Con.Res. 1).

This report provides historical information on the Joint Inaugural Committee, including the committee’s origin, membership, leadership, staffing, and inaugural activities.

R42603

January 30, 2025

Jacob R. Straus Specialist on the Congress

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Contents

Introduction ..................................................................................................................................... 1 Origin of the Joint Inaugural Committee ......................................................................................... 2

Inaugural Organization Prior to 1901 ........................................................................................ 2

Creating the First Joint Inaugural Committee ........................................................................... 3 Authorizing the 2025 Joint Inaugural Committee ..................................................................... 3

Committee Membership .................................................................................................................. 4

Senate Membership ................................................................................................................... 4

House Membership ................................................................................................................... 7 Committee Chairs..................................................................................................................... 11

Inaugural Chairs Other than the Chair of the Senate Committee on Rules and

Administration ............................................................................................................... 13

Linkage Between Joint Inaugural Committee Chair and President-Elect’s Party ............. 16

Committee Staffing ....................................................................................................................... 16 Committee Funding ....................................................................................................................... 18

Inaugural Activities ....................................................................................................................... 18

Swearing-In Ceremony ........................................................................................................... 18 Inaugural Luncheon ................................................................................................................ 19

Conclusion ..................................................................................................................................... 20

Tables

Table 1. Senate Membership on the Joint Congressional Committee on Inaugural

Ceremonies, 1901-2025 ............................................................................................................... 5

Table 2. House of Representative Membership on the Joint Congressional Committee on

Inaugural Ceremonies, 1901-2025 ............................................................................................... 7

Table 3. Chairs of the Joint Congressional Committee on Inaugural Ceremonies,

1901-2025................................................................................................................................... 12

Table 4. Joint Congressional Committee on Inaugural Ceremonies Appropriations ..................... 18

Table A-1. Joint Inaugural Committee Membership on Inauguration Day ................................... 21

Appendixes

Appendix. Joint Committee Membership on Inauguration Day .................................................... 21

Contacts

Author Information ........................................................................................................................ 25

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Introduction

Every four years, on January 20 at noon, the President-elect is scheduled to be sworn in as President of the United States.¹ Pursuant to the Constitution, the most recent presidential inauguration occurred on Monday, January 20, 2025.²

Each year prior to an inauguration, Congress authorizes the creation of the Joint Congressional Committee on Inaugural Ceremonies (Joint Inaugural Committee, or JCCIC). The Joint Inaugural Committee is responsible for the planning and execution of the swearing-in ceremony and for hosting an inaugural luncheon for the President and Vice President at the U.S. Capitol.³

The 2025 Joint Congressional Committee on Inaugural Ceremonies was authorized by the 118^th Congress (2023-2024) on May 6, 2024.⁴ The concurrent resolution established the Joint Inaugural Committee, consisting of three Senators, appointed by the President of the Senate, and three Representatives, appointed by the Speaker of the House. The resolution further authorized the committee “to make the necessary arrangements for the inauguration of the President-elect and the Vice President-elect of the United States on January 20, 2025.”⁵ On January 3, 2025, the 119^th Congress (2025-2026) reauthorized the Joint Inaugural Committee.⁶

This report provides a history of the Joint Congressional Committee on Inaugural Ceremonies, including committee membership, staffing, and inaugural activities.

1 Historically, public presidential inaugurations have not been held on a Sunday. On seven occasions, Inauguration Day (under the 20^th Amendment, Inauguration Day occurs on January 20) has fallen on a Sunday. In each case, a private swearing-in ceremony occurred on Sunday, with a public ceremony on Monday. An Inauguration Day first fell on a Sunday in 1821, at the outset of President James Monroe’s second term. At that time, when concern was expressed regarding the “propriety of scheduling the ceremony for his second inauguration on the Sabbath Day,” President Monroe sought advice from Chief Justice John Marshall on when to schedule his swearing-in ceremony. Marshall, after consulting with the other members of the Supreme Court, determined that postponing the oath until Monday “unless some official duty should require it being taken on Sunday,” was the proper course of action. For more information on President Monroe’s second inauguration, see Paul F. Boller Jr., Presidential Inaugurations (New York: Harcourt, Inc., 2001), p. 23. Other occasions where Inauguration Day fell on a Sunday and the public ceremony was held on Monday were in 1849 for President Zachary Taylor, 1877 for President Rutherford B. Hayes, 1917 for President Woodrow Wilson, 1957 for President Dwight D. Eisenhower, 1985 for President Ronald Reagan, and 2013 for President Barack Obama. When the public inauguration ceremony occurs on Monday, there are examples where Congress has authorized the Joint Congressional Committee on Inaugural Ceremonies (JCCIC) to organize the public ceremony on the alternate date. For example, in the 112^th Cong., S.Con.Res. 35 authorized the JCCIC for a January 21, 2013, ceremony and S.Con.Res. 36 authorized the use of the Capitol Rotunda and Emancipation Hall of the Capitol Visitor Center for January 21, 2013, inaugural activities. A similar JCCIC authorization resolution was agreed to for President Reagan’s 1985 inauguration on January 21, 1985. See S.Con.Res. 122 (98^th Cong.), 98 Stat. 3452 (1984).

2 National Archives, “20th Amendment,” Constitution of the United States, https://www.archives.gov/founding-docs/ amendments-11-27.

3 Joint Congressional Committee on Inaugural Ceremonies, http://inaugural.senate.gov.

4 S.Con.Res. 34 (118th Cong.), agreed to by the Senate on May 2, 2024, and by the House on May 6, 2024. “Establishing the Joint Congressional Committee on Inaugural Ceremonies for the Inauguration of the President-Elect and Vice President-Elect of the United States on January 20, 2025,” Congressional Record, daily edition, vol. 170 (May 2, 2024), p. S3368; and “Establishing the Joint Congressional Committee on Inaugural Ceremonies for the Inauguration of the President-Elect and Vice President-Elect of the United States on January 20, 2025,” Congressional Record, daily edition, vol. 170 (May 6, 2024), p. H2861.

5 S.Con.Res. 34 (118th Cong.).

6 S.Con.Res. 1 (119th Cong.).

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Origin of the Joint Inaugural Committee

In 1901, Congress established the first Joint Inaugural Committee for the inauguration of President William McKinley.⁷ The Senate supervised inaugural ceremonies prior to 1901. Sole responsibility for inaugural preparation and supervision had been a Senate function because of its standing as a continuing legislative body, whereas the House must organize anew at the beginning of each Congress.⁸ The relevance of this consideration was particularly evident during the times when the inauguration occurred on March 4, the same day a new Congress convened.⁹ There is no evidence indicating that the House seriously challenged this reasoning until 1901.

Inaugural Organization Prior to 1901

The Senate and House first agreed on a joint resolution calling for the creation of a Joint Inaugural Committee “consisting of three Senators and three Representatives ... to make the necessary arrangements for the inauguration of the President-elect and Vice President-elect of the United States” in 1901. The resolution called for the members of the joint committee “to be appointed by the President pro tempore of the Senate and the Speaker of the House of Representatives respectively.”¹⁰

Initial House debate on the Joint Inaugural Committee was limited. It was focused not on making the House an equal partner for planning the ceremonies, but rather on what House Members felt was historical discrimination against the chamber with regard to their seating at the rear of the inaugural platform. The issue was first raised in February 1885, when Representative Roger Q. Mills introduced a resolution proposing that the House “decline to take any part” in that year’s inaugural ceremonies because the Senate committee appointed to arrange the inaugural ceremonies had declined to give House Members their proper place. Following a relatively short debate, the House rejected Mills’s resolution by a 185 to 55 margin.¹¹ That year, nevertheless, the Speaker of the House appointed three Members of the House to cooperate with the Senate inaugural committee. The trio, however, had virtually no involvement in the ceremonies.¹²

On the eve of the next inaugural (1889), Representative Newton C. Blanchard revived the issue of what he called the “inferior position assigned the members of the House and to members-elect” at the inaugural ceremonies. Blanchard’s resolution declared that the place assigned to “members of the House of Representatives and members-elect” at the inauguration of the President “should be equal and similar to that of members of the Senate.” Look at the official program, he told his House colleagues, and you “will see that a place is assigned to the members of the Senate at least three degrees higher in honor and dignity than the place assigned to members of the House of

7 “Inaugural Arrangements,” Congressional Record, vol. 34, part 2 (February 5, 1901), p. 1923; and “Inauguration Arrangements,” Congressional Record, vol. 34, part 2 (February 5, 1901), p. 1960.

8 Sen. John Sherman, “Inaugural Ceremonies,” remarks in the Senate, Congressional Record, vol. 16, part 3 (March 2, 1885), p. 2390.

9 The ratification of the Twentieth Amendment on January 23, 1933, moved Inauguration Day to January 20 and the beginning of Congress to January 3.

10 “Inaugural Arrangements,” House debate, Congressional Record, vol. 34, part 2 (January 17, 1901), p. 1125; and “Inaugural Arrangements,” Senate debate, Congressional Record, vol. 34, part 2 (February 4, 1901), p. 1901.

11 “Privileges of Representatives in Inaugural Ceremonies,” House debate, Congressional Record, vol. 16, part 3 (March 2, 1885), p. 2406; and “Privilege of the House-Inaugural Ceremonies,” House debate, Congressional Record, vol. 16, part 3 (March 2, 1885), pp. 2406-2410.

12 Rep. Charles Baker, “Arrangements for the Inauguration,” House debate, Congressional Record, vol. 20, part 3 (March 2, 1889), p. 2716. Although the Congressional Record of 1885 does not acknowledge the appointment of the committee, Rep. Charles Baker provided this information during the 1889 House debate.

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Representatives.”¹³ The Senate Inaugural Committee had also given Senators five tickets for the inaugural platform, while providing Representatives with only two tickets. The resolution was agreed to at the conclusion of Blanchard’s remarks, but at his suggestion was not communicated to the Senate:

I did not think [it] proper to include in the resolution any direction that it should be communicated to the Senate. I considered it the proper and perhaps the more dignified course to simply assert the principle that the House of Representatives have a right to an equal share in these arrangements with the Senate, and to let that go on record as the judgment of the House, so that in the future, when arrangements are to be made for other inaugurations of Presidents, the Senate will take cognizance of the fact that this protest and this declaration of the principle involved and of the rights of the House was adopted by this House of Representatives.¹⁴

Creating the First Joint Inaugural Committee

More than a decade would pass before the issue of House involvement in the inaugural ceremonies reemerged. In 1901, when the question was revisited, a different strategy was used. Representative John Dalzell, who led the effort, focused on modifying the joint resolution appropriating funds for the inaugural ceremony. He proposed that when the House Appropriations Committee reported the funding resolution, which had originated in the Senate, it include language calling for an inaugural program adopted by a joint committee of the Senate and House, rather than just the Senate.

The subsequently reported resolution stipulated that the Secretary of the Senate, as well as the Clerk of the House, were authorized to pay expenses associated with the inauguration of the President. The same day, a resolution introduced by Representative Henry H. Bingham was agreed to authorizing the creation of a joint inaugural committee “consisting of three Senators and three Representatives, to be appointed by the President pro tempore of the Senate and Speaker of the House, respectively.” Following conference committee deliberations on the funding resolution, the Senate agreed to appropriation language approved by the House as well as the House resolution calling for the creation of the first joint inaugural committee.¹⁵

Authorizing the 2025 Joint Inaugural Committee

On May 6, 2024, Congress authorized the Joint Congressional Committee on Inaugural Ceremonies for the 2025 inauguration.¹⁶ The resolution creating the Joint Inaugural Committee

13 Rep. Newton C. Blanchard, “Arrangements for the Inauguration,” House debate, Congressional Record, vol. 20, part 3 (March 2, 1889), p. 2715.

14 “Arrangements for the Inauguration,” House debate, Congressional Record, vol. 20, part 3 (March 2, 1889), p. 2716.

15 “Inaugural Expenses, March 4, 1901,” House debate, Congressional Record, vol. 34, part 2 (January 15, 1901), p. 1033; “Inaugural Expenses, March 4, 1901,” House debate, Congressional Record, vol. 34, part 2 (January 16, 1901), pp. 1105-1106; “Inaugural Arrangements,” Senate debate, Congressional Record, vol. 34, part 2 (January 18, 1901), p. 1161; “Expenses of the Inaugural Ceremonies of the President and Vice President,” House debate, Congressional Record, vol. 34, part 2 (February 2, 1901), p. 1862; and “Inaugural Arrangements,” Senate debate, Congressional Record, vol. 34, part 2 (February 4, 1901), p. 1901. Also, see 31 Stat. 1461, February 8, 1901.

16 “Establishing the Joint Congressional Committee on Inaugural Ceremonies for the Inauguration of the President- Elect and Vice President-Elect of the United States on January 20, 2025,” Congressional Record, daily edition, vol. 170 (May 2, 2024), p. S3368; and “Establishing the Joint Congressional Committee on Inaugural Ceremonies for the Inauguration of the President-Elect and Vice President-Elect of the United States on January 20, 2025,” Congressional Record, daily edition, vol. 170 (May 6, 2024), p. H2861.

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(S.Con.Res. 34, 118^th Congress), is identical, except for the date, to previous authorizing resolutions:

SECTION 1. ESTABLISHMENT OF JOINT COMMITTEE.

There is established a Joint Congressional Committee on Inaugural Ceremonies (in this resolution referred to as the “joint committee”) consisting of 3 Senators and 3 Members of the House of Representatives, to be appointed by the President of the Senate and the Speaker of the House of Representatives, respectively. The joint committee is authorized to make the necessary arrangements for the inauguration of the President-elect and Vice President-elect of the United States on January 20, 2025.

SEC. 2. SUPPORT OF THE JOINT COMMITTEE.

The joint committee—

(1) is authorized to utilize appropriate equipment and the services of appropriate personnel of departments and agencies of the Federal Government, under arrangements between the joint committee and the heads of those departments and agencies, in connection with the inaugural proceedings and ceremonies; and

(2) may accept gifts and donations of goods and services to carry out its responsibilities.¹⁷

Also on May 6, 2024, the House and Senate agreed to S.Con.Res. 35 (118^th Congress), to authorize the JCCIC to use the Capitol Rotunda and Emancipation Hall of the Capitol Visitor Center for inaugural events.¹⁸ On January 3, 2025, the House and Senate agreed to S.Con.Res. 1 to reauthorize the Joint Inaugural Committee for the 119^th Congress and to reauthorize the use of the Capitol Rotunda and Emancipation Hall for inaugural events.¹⁹

Committee Membership

Since 1901, when the first Joint Inaugural Committee was authorized, membership on the committee has consisted of three Senators and three Members of the House of Representatives. Currently, appointments to the committee are made by the President of the Senate and the Speaker of the House respectively. Appointments are generally for the length of committee activities. For House committee members, however, reappointment is necessary because an intervening election occurs between initial appointment and the inaugural ceremony. The need to reappoint committee members does not generally apply to the Senate, unless a Senate committee member leaves the chamber in the intervening election.

Senate Membership

Senate membership on the Joint Inaugural Committee is appointed by the President of the Senate,²⁰ pursuant to authority granted in the authorizing resolution. Past practice has been for the President of the Senate to appoint the chair and ranking member of the Senate Committee on Rules and Administration, and the Senate majority leader. For the 2025 inauguration, the President of the Senate appointed Senator Amy Klobuchar, chair of the Senate Committee on Rules and Administration in the 118^th Congress; Senator Deb Fischer, the Senate Committee on

17 S.Con.Res. 34 (118th Cong.).

18 S.Con.Res. 35 (118th Cong.).

19 S.Con.Res. 1 (119th Cong.).

20 Pursuant to Article I, Section 3, clause 4, the Vice President of the United States serves as the President of the Senate. For more information, see U.S. Congress, Senate, The Constitution of the United States of America, 111^th Cong., 2^nd sess., S.Doc. 111-39 (Washington: GPO, 2010).

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Rules and Administration’s ranking member in the 118^th Congress; and Senator Chuck Schumer, the Senate majority leader in the 118^th Congress.²¹ Table 1 lists all Senators on the Joint Inaugural Committee since 1901.

Table 1. Senate Membership on the Joint Congressional Committee on Inaugural

Ceremonies, 1901-2025

Inaugural Year Majority Members Minority Members

1901 Marcus A. Hanna (R-OH)* John C. Spooner (R-WI)

James K. Jones (D-AR)

1905 John C. Spooner (R-WI)* Nelson W. Aldrich (R-RI)

Augustus O. Bacon (D-GA)

1909 Phlander C. Knox (R-PA)* Henry Cabot Lodge (R-MA)

Augustus O. Bacon (D-GA)

1913 Augustus O. Bacon (D-GA) Lee S. Overman (D-NC)

W. Murray Crane (R-MA)*^a

1917 Lee S. Overman (D-NC)* Hoke Smith (D-GA)

Francis E. Warren (R-WY)

1921 Philander C. Knox (R-PA)* Knute Nelson (R-MN)

Lee S. Overman (D-NC)

1925 Charles Curtis (R-KS)* Frederick Hale (R-ME)

Lee S. Overman (D-NC)

1929 George H. Moses (R-NH)* Frederick Hale (R-ME)

Lee S. Overman (D-NC)

1933 George H. Moses (R-NH) Frederick Hale (R-ME)

Joseph T. Robinson (D-AR)*

1937 Matthew M. Neely (D-WV)* Joseph T. Robinson (D-AR)

Frederick Hale (R-ME)

1941 Matthew M. Neely (D-WV)* Alben W. Barkley (D-KY)

Charles L. McNary (R-OR)

1945 Harry F. Byrd (D-VA)* Kenneth McKellar (D-TN)

Arthur Vandenberg (R-MI)

1949 Carl T. Hayden (D-AZ)* J. Howard McGrath (D-RI) Ablen W. Barkely (D-KY)^b

Kenneth S. Wherry (R-NE) C. Wayland Brooks (R-IL)

1953 Styles Bridges (R-NH)^c* Margaret Chase Smith (R-ME) Herman Welker (R-ID)^d

Carl T. Hayden (D-AZ)

1957 John J. Sparkman (D-AL) Theodore F. Green (D-RI)

Styles Bridges (R-NH)*

21 “Appointment,” Congressional Record, vol. 170 (May 21, 2024), p. S3800.

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Inaugural Year Majority Members Minority Members

1961 John J. Sparkman (D-AL)* Thomas Hennings (D-MO) Carl T. Hayden (D-AZ)^e

Styles Bridges (R-NH)

1965 B. Everett Jordan (D-NC)* John J. Sparkman (D-AL)

Leverett Saltonstall (R-MA)

1969 B. Everett Jordan (D-NC) Michael J. Mansfield (D-MT)

Everett M. Dirksen (R-IL)*

1973 Howard W. Cannon (D-NV)* B. Everett Jordan (D-NC)^f Michael J. Mansfield (D-MT)

Marlow W. Cook (R-KY)*

1977 Howard W. Cannon (D-NV)* Robert C. Byrd (D-WV)

Mark Hatfield (R-OR)

1981 Mark Hatfield (R-OR)* Howard H. Baker (R-TN)

Robert C. Byrd (D-WV) Claiborne Pell (D-RI)^g

1985 Charles McC. Mathias (R-MD)* Howard H. Baker (R-TN)

Wendell H. Ford (D-KY)

1989 Wendell H. Ford (D-KY)* Robert C. Byrd (D-WV)

Ted Stevens (R-AK)

1993 Wendell H. Ford (D-KY)* George J. Mitchell (D-ME)

Ted Stevens (R-AK)

1997 John Warner (R-VA)* Trent Lott (R-MS)

Wendell H. Ford (D-KY)

2001 Mitch McConnell (R-KY)* Trent Lott (R-MS)

Christopher Dodd (D-CT)

2005 Trent Lott (R-MS)* William Frist (R-TN)

Christopher Dodd (D-CT)

2009 Dianne Feinstein (D-CA)* Harry Reid (D-NV)

Bob Bennett (R-UT)

2013 Chuck Schumer (D-NY)* Harry Reid (D-NV)

Lamar Alexander (R-TN)

2017 Roy Blunt (R-MO)* Mitch McConnell (R-KY)

Chuck Schumer (D-NY)

2021 Roy Blunt (R-MO)* Mitch McConnell (R-KY)

Amy Klobuchar (D-MN)

2025 Amy Klobuchar (D-MN)* Chuck Schumer (D-NY)

Deb Fischer (R-NE)

Source: U.S. Congress, Senate, Joint Congressional Committee on Inaugural Ceremonies, “Inaugural Committees,” https://www.inaugural.senate.gov/about/past-committees. For 2025 appointments, see “Appointment,” Congressional Record, vol. 170 (May 21, 2024), p. S3800. Notes: Any Senator whose name appears with an asterisk (*) served as committee chair or cochair. a. Senator W. Murray Crane was the chair of the Committee on Rules in the 62^nd Congress (1911-1913). In the 1912 election, the Democrats became the majority party for the 63^rd Congress (1913-1915).

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b. In November 1948, Senator Ablen W. Barkely was elected Vice President. Subsequently, Senator Carl T. Hayden was appointed to replace Senator Barkley on the committee. Additionally, in November 1948, after the Democratic Party won control of the Senate, Senator Hayden succeeded Senator C. Wayland Brooks as chair.

c. On January 6, 1953, following the Republican Party gaining control of the Senate as a result of the 1952 election, Senator Styles Bridges replaced Senator Carl T. Hayden as chair.

d. Senator Herman Welker replaced Senator Margaret Chase Smith, who resigned from the committee. Senator Smith had earlier replaced Senator Ernest W. McFarland, who resigned from the committee.

e. In 1961, Senator Carl T. Hayden replaced Senator Thomas Hennings, who died in office.

f. On August 2, 1972, Senator Howard W. Cannon replaced Senator B. Everett Jordan as chair after Senator Jordan was not renominated for the Senate by the North Carolina Democratic Party. Prior to replacing Senator Jordan as chair, Senator Cannon was the second-ranked Democrat on the Rules and Administration Committee.

g. On January 5, 1981, Senator Claiborne Pell stepped aside as chair, when the Republicans became the majority party in the Senate. Senator Mark Hatfield became chair, and Senator Pell remained on the committee as a fourth Senator pursuant to S.Con.Res. 2 (97^th Congress).

h. Appointments to the committee for the 2025 inauguration reflect the majority party at the time of appointment in May 2024. Senator Klobuchar remained the chair of the Joint Inaugural Committee for the 2025 inauguration.

House Membership

The Speaker of the House appoints the House membership to the Joint Inaugural Committee, pursuant to authority granted in the authorizing resolution. Past practice has been for the Speaker to appoint himself or herself, along with the House majority leader and House minority leader. For the 2025 inauguration, Speaker of the House Mike Johnson appointed himself, Majority Leader Steve Scalise, and Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries.²² Table 2 lists the House Members on the Joint Inaugural Committee since 1901, including the reappointment or replacement of committee members in the following Congress, when necessary.

Table 2. House of Representative Membership on the Joint Congressional

Committee on Inaugural Ceremonies, 1901-2025

Inaugural

Year Congress Majority Members Minority Members

1901 56^th Congress Joseph G. Cannon (R-IL) John Dalzell (R-PA)

Thomas C. McRae (D-AR)

57^th Congress Joseph G. Cannon (R-IL) John Dalzell (R-PA)

Thomas C. McRae (D-AR)

1905 58^th Congress John Dalzell (R-PA) Edgard D. Crumpacker (R-IN)

John S. Williams (D-MS)

59^th Congress John Dalzell (R-PA) Edgard D. Crumpacker (R-IN)

John S. Williams (D-MS)

1909 60^th Congress James F. Burke (R-PA) Horace O. Young (R-MI)

John W. Gaines (D-TN)

22 “Appointment of Members to the Joint Congressional Committee on Inaugural Ceremonies,” Congressional Record, daily edition, vol. 170 (May 21, 2024), p. H3364. For the 119^th Congress, Speaker Johnson reappointed himself, Majority Leader Scalise, and Minority Leader Jeffries to the Joint Inaugural Committee. “Reappointment of Members to the Joint Congressional Committee on Inaugural Ceremonies,” Congressional Record, daily edition, vol. 171 (January 3, 2025), p. H27.

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Inaugural

Year Congress Majority Members Minority Members

61^st Congress James F. Burke (R-PA) Horace O. Young (R-MI)

John W. Gaines (D-TN)

1913 62^nd Congress William W. Rucker (D-MO) Finis J. Garrett (D-TN)

William B. McKinley (R-IL)

63^rd Congress William W. Rucker (D-MO) Finis J. Garrett (D-TN)

William B. McKinley (R-IL)

1917 64^th Congress William W. Rucker (D-MO) Finis J. Garrett (D-TN)

William B. McKinley (R-IL)

65^th Congress William W. Rucker (D-MO) Finis J. Garrett (D-TN)

William B. McKinley (R-IL)

1921 66^th Congress Joseph G. Cannon (R-IL) Charles F. Reavis (R-NE)

William W. Rucker (D-MO)

67^th Congress Joseph G. Cannon (R-IL) Charles F. Reavis (R-NE)

Charles M. Stedman (D-NC)^a

1925 68^th Congress William W. Griest (R-PA) Lindley H. Hadley (R-WA)

Arthur B. Rouse (D-KY)

69^th Congress William W. Griest (R-PA) Lindley H. Hadley (R-WA)

Arthur B. Rouse (D-KY)

1929 70^th Congress Bertrand H. Snell (R-NY) Leonidas C. Dyer (R-MO)

Edward W. Pou (D-NC)

71^st Congress Bertrand H. Snell (R-NY) Leonidas C. Dyer (R-MO)

Edward W. Pou (D-NC)

1933 72^nd Congress Edward W. Pou (D-NC) Henry T. Rainey (D-IL)

Bertrand H. Snell (R-NY)

73^rd Congress Edward W. Pou (D-NC) Henry T. Rainey (D-IL)

Bertrand H. Snell (R-NY)

1937 74^th Congress Robert L. Doughton (D-NC) John J. O’Connor (D-NY)

Bertrand H. Snell (R-NY)

75^th Congress Robert L. Doughton (D-NC) John J. O’Connor (D-NY)

Bertrand H. Snell (R-NY)

1941 76^th Congress Robert L. Doughton (D-NC) Sam Rayburn (D-TX)

Joseph W. Martin (R-MA)

77^th Congress Robert L. Doughton (D-NC) Sam Rayburn (D-TX)

Joseph W. Martin (R-MA)

1945 78^th Congress Robert L. Doughton (D-NC) Sam Rayburn (D-TX)

Joseph W. Martin (R-MA)

79^th Congress Robert L. Doughton (D-NC) Sam Rayburn (D-TX)

Joseph W. Martin (R-MA)

1949 80^th Congress Charles A. Halleck (R-IN) Leslie C. Arends (R-IL)^b

John W. McCormack (D-MA)

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Inaugural

Year Congress Majority Members Minority Members

81^st Congress John W. McCormack (D-MA) Harry R. Sheppard (D-CA)

Charles A. Halleck (R-IN)

1953 82^nd Congress Sam Rayburn (D-TX) John W. McCormack (D-MA)

Joseph W. Martin (R-MA)

83^rd Congress Joseph W. Martin (R-MA) Leslie C. Arends (R-IL)^c

Sam Rayburn (D-TX)

1957 84^th Congress Sam Rayburn (D-TX) John W. McCormack (D-MA)

Joseph W. Martin (R-MA)

85^th Congress Sam Rayburn (D-TX) John W. McCormack (D-MA)

Joseph W. Martin (R-MA)

1961 86^th Congress Sam Rayburn (D-TX) John W. McCormack (D-MA)

Charles A. Halleck (R-IN)

87^th Congress Sam Rayburn (D-TX) John W. McCormack (D-MA)

Charles A. Halleck (R-IN)

1965 88^th Congress John W. McCormack (D-MA) Carl B. Albert (D-OK)

Charles A. Halleck (R-IN)

89^th Congress John W. McCormack (D-MA) Carl B. Albert (D-OK)

Gerald R. Ford (R-MI)^d

1969 90^th Congress John W. McCormack (D-MA) Carl B. Albert (D-OK)

Gerald R. Ford (R-MI)

91^st Congress John W. McCormack (D-MA) Carl B. Albert (D-OK)

Gerald R. Ford (R-MI)

1973 92^nd Congress Carl B. Albert (D-OK) T. Hale Boggs (D-LA)^e

Gerald R. Ford (R-MI)

93^rd Congress Carl B. Albert (D-OK) Thomas P. O’Neill (D-MA)

Gerald R. Ford (R-MI)

1977 94^th Congress Carl B. Albert (D-OK)^f Thomas P. O’Neill (D-MA)

John J. Rhodes (R-AZ)

95^th Congress Thomas P. O’Neill (D-MA) James C. Wright (D-TX)

John J. Rhodes (R-AZ)

1981 96^th Congress Thomas P. O’Neill (D-MA) James C. Wright (D-TX)

John J. Rhodes (R-AZ)^g

97^th Congress Thomas P. O’Neill (D-MA) James C. Wright (D-TX)

John J. Rhodes (R-AZ) Robert H. Michel (R-IL)

1985 98^th Congress Thomas P. O’Neill (D-MA) James C. Wright (D-TX)

Robert H. Michel (R-IL)

99^th Congress Thomas P. O’Neill (D-MA) James C. Wright (D-TX)

Robert H. Michel (R-IL)

1989 100^th Congress James C. Wright (D-TX) Thomas S. Foley (D-WA)

Robert H. Michel (R-IL)

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Inaugural

Year Congress Majority Members Minority Members

101^st Congress James C. Wright (D-TX) Thomas S. Foley (D-WA)

Robert H. Michel (R-IL)

1993 102^nd Congress Thomas S. Foley (D-WA) Richard A. Gephardt (D-MO)

Robert H. Michel (R-IL)

103^rd Congress Thomas S. Foley (D-WA) Richard A. Gephardt (D-MO)

Robert H. Michel (R-IL)

1997 104^th Congress Newt Gingrich (R-GA) Richard K. Armey (R-TX)

Richard A. Gephardt (D-MO)

105^th Congress Newt Gingrich (R-GA) Richard K. Armey (R-TX)

Richard A. Gephardt (D-MO)

2001 106^th Congress Newt Gingrich (R-GA) Richard K. Armey (R-TX)

Richard A. Gephardt (D-MO)

107^th Congress J. Dennis Hastert (R-IL) Richard K. Armey (R-TX)

Richard A. Gephardt (D-MO)

2005 108^th Congress J. Dennis Hastert (R-IL) Tom DeLay (R-TX)

Nancy Pelosi (D-CA)

109^th Congress J. Dennis Hastert (R-IL) Tom DeLay (R-TX)

Nancy Pelosi (D-CA)

2009 110^th Congress Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) Steny Hoyer (D-MD)

John Boehner (R-OH)

111^th Congress Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) Steny Hoyer (D-MD)

John Boehner (R-OH)

2013 112^th Congress John Boehner (R-OH) Eric Cantor (R-VA)

Nancy Pelosi (D-CA)

113^th Congress John Boehner (R-OH) Eric Cantor (R-VA)

Nancy Pelosi (D-CA)

2017 114^th Congress Paul Ryan (R-WI) Kevin McCarthy (R-CA)

Nancy Pelosi (D-CA)

115^th Congress Paul Ryan (R-WI) Kevin McCarthy (R-CA)

Nancy Pelosi (D-CA)

2021 116^th Congress Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) Steny Hoyer (D-MD)

Kevin McCarthy (R-CA)

2025 118^th Congress Mike Johnson (R-LA) Steve Scalise (R-LA)

Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY)

119^th Congress Mike Johnson (R-LA) Steve Scalise (R-LA)

Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY)

Source: U.S. Congress, Senate, Joint Congressional Committee on Inaugural Ceremonies, “Inaugural Committees,” https://www.inaugural.senate.gov/about/past-committees; Garrison Nelson, Committees in the U.S. Congress 1947- 1992, Volume 2: Committee Histories and Member Assignments (Washington: Congressional Quarterly, 1994); U.S. Congress, Joint Congressional Committee on Inaugural Ceremonies, “Committee,” at http://www.inaugural.senate.gov/about/committee; Appointment of Members to Joint Congressional Committee on Inaugural Ceremonies,” Congressional Record, daily edition, vol. 146 (May 8, 2000), p. H2619; “Appointment of

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Members to Joint Congressional Committee on Inaugural Ceremonies,” Congressional Record, daily edition, vol. 142 (September 10, 1996), p. H10115; “Reappointment as Members of Joint Committee on Inaugural Ceremonies,” Congressional Record, vol. 155 (January 7, 2009), p. H42; “Appointment of Members to the Joint Congressional Committee on Inaugural Ceremonies,” Congressional Record, daily edition, vol. 158 (March 20, 2012), p. H1420; “Appointment of Members to Joint Congressional Committee on Inaugural Ceremonies,” Congressional Record, daily edition, vol. 159 (January 14, 2013), p. H82; “Appointment of Members to Joint Congressional Committee on Inaugural Ceremonies,” Congressional Record, daily edition, vol. 162 (February 11, 2016), p. H721; U.S. Congress, Senate, Committee on Rules and Administration, “Photos: Joint Congressional Committee on Inaugural Ceremonies Kicks Off Planning for 59^th Presidential Inauguration,” press release, July 1, 2020, https://www.rules.senate.gov/news/press-releases/photos-joint-congressional-committee-on-inaugural- ceremonies-kicks-off-planning-for-59th-presidential-inauguration; “Appointment of Members to the Joint Congressional Committee on Inaugural Ceremonies,” Congressional Record, daily edition, vol. 170 (May 21, 2024), p. H3364; and “Reappointment of Members to Joint Congressional Committee on Inaugural Ceremonies,” Congressional Record, daily edition, vol. 171 (January 3, 2025), p. H27. Notes: a. Representative Charles M. Stedman replaced Representative William W. Rucker, who resigned from the committee.

b. In the 1948 election, the Democrats won the majority in the House for the 81^st Congress (1949-1950). As a result, Representative Leslie C. Arends was removed from the Joint Inaugural Committee and was replaced with Representative Harry R. Sheppard.

c. In the 1952 election, the Republicans won the majority in the House for the 83^rd Congress (1953-1954). As a result, Representative Leslie C. Arends, who served as the majority whip, was added to the Joint Inaugural Committee as the second Republican member, replacing Representative John W. McCormack.

d. Representative Gerald R. Ford was elected House minority leader in the 89^th Congress (1965-1966), replacing Representative Charles A. Halleck.

e. On October 16, 1972, a plane carrying Representative T. Hale Boggs disappeared between Anchorage and Juneau, Alaska, and Representative Boggs was presumed dead. Representative Thomas P. O’Neill was subsequently elected majority leader and appointed to replace Representative Boggs on the Joint Inaugural Committee. See H.Res. 1 (93^rd Congress) for more information on Representative Bogg’s disappearance and the role of the House in notifying the Governor of Louisiana.

f. Speaker of the House Carl B. Albert retired at the end of the 94^th Congress (1975-1976). He was replaced as Speaker of the House by Representative Thomas P. O’Neill and on the Joint Inaugural Committee by Representative James C. Wright.

g. Representative John J. Rhodes stepped down as minority leader at the end of the 96^th Congress (1979- 1980). He was replaced as minority leader and on the Joint Inaugural Committee by Representative Robert H. Michel.

From time to time, a House Member appointed to serve on the Joint Inaugural Committee has not been reelected or has resigned from the House leadership, retired, or died in office. In such an instance, the Speaker has appointed another Representative to the committee in his or her place. Traditionally, the Speaker replaces the departing committee member with his or her House leadership replacement. For example, during the 88^th Congress (1963-1964), Representative Charles A. Halleck served as the House minority leader. At the end of the 88^th Congress, Representative Halleck stepped down as minority leader and was replaced by Representative Gerald R. Ford. In January 1965, when Congress convened for the 89^th Congress (1965-1966), the Speaker reappointed the Joint Inaugural Committee, substituting Representative Ford for Representative Halleck.

Committee Chairs

Although none of the measures establishing the Joint Inaugural Committee have specified a process for selecting the committee chair, a Senator has always presided over committee activities. Through the end of World War II, the Senate traditionally provided the chair for each

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joint committee.²³ In recent decades, however, the chairmanship of permanent joint committees has typically rotated between the chambers. Nevertheless, no House Member has ever chaired a temporary inaugural panel. Table 3 lists the chairs of the Joint Inaugural Committee between 1901 and 2025, and their institutional positions in the Senate at the time of the inauguration.

For 22 of the 32 inaugurations between 1901 and 2025, either the chair of the Senate Committee on Rules (1901-1945) or the chair of the Senate Committee on Rules and Administration (1949- 2025) has also chaired the Joint Inaugural Committee. On eight occasions (1901, 1929, 1933, 1953, 1957, 1961, 1969, and 1981), as noted in Table 3, the chairs of the Joint Inaugural Committee have been Senators drawn from other institutional positions.

Table 3. Chairs of the Joint Congressional Committee on Inaugural Ceremonies,

1901-2025

Year President (Party) Chair (Party-State) Senate Institutional Position

1901 William McKinley (R) Marcus A. Hanna (R-OH) Chair, Relations with Canada

1905 Theodore Roosevelt (R) John C. Spooner (R-WI) Chair, Rules

1909 William Taft (R) Philander C. Knox (R-PA) Chair, Rules

1913 Woodrow Wilson (D) W. Murray Crane (R-MA) Chair, Rules^a

1917 Woodrow Wilson (D) Lee S. Overman (D-NC) Chair, Rules

1921 Warren Harding (R) Philander C. Knox (R-PA) Chair, Rules

1925 Calvin Coolidge (R) Charles Curtis (R-KS) Chair, Rules

1929 Herbert Hoover (R) George H. Moses (R-NH) Chair, Post Office and Post Roads^b

1933 Franklin Roosevelt (D) Joseph T. Robinson (D-AR) Minority Leader

1937 Franklin Roosevelt (D) Matthew M. Neely (D-WV) Chair, Rules

1941 Franklin Roosevelt (D) Matthew M. Neely (D-WV) Chair, Rules

1945 Franklin Roosevelt (D) Harry F. Byrd (D-VA) Chair, Rules

1949 Harry Truman (D) Carl T. Hayden (D-AZ)^c Chair, Rules and Administration

1953 Dwight Eisenhower (R) Styles Bridges (R-NH)^d President Pro Tempore

1957 Dwight Eisenhower (R) Styles Bridges (R-NH) Ranking Member, Appropriations

1961 John F. Kennedy (D) John J. Sparkman (D-AL) Chair, Small Business

1965 Lyndon B. Johnson (D) B. Everett Jordan (D-NC) Chair, Rules and Administration

1969 Richard Nixon (R) Everett M. Dirksen (R-IL) Senate Minority Leader

1973 Richard Nixon (R) Howard W. Cannon (D-NV)^e Chair, Rules and Administration

1977 Jimmy Carter (D) Howard W. Cannon (D-NV) Chair, Rules and Administration

1981 Ronald Reagan (R) Mark Hatfield (R-OR)^f Chair, Appropriations

1985 Ronald Reagan (R) Charles McC. Mathias (R-MD) Chair, Rules and Administration

1989 George H. W. Bush (R) Wendell H. Ford (D-KY) Chair, Rules and Administration

1993 Bill Clinton (D) Wendell H. Ford (D-KY) Chair, Rules and Administration

1997 Bill Clinton (D) John Warner (R-VA) Chair, Rules and Administration

23 Floyd M. Riddick, The United States Congress Organization and Procedure (Manassas, VA: National Capitol Publishers, 1949), pp. 146-148.

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Year President (Party) Chair (Party-State) Senate Institutional Position

2001 George W. Bush (R) Mitch McConnell (R-KY) Chair, Rules and Administration

2005 George W. Bush (R) Trent Lott (R-MS) Chair, Rules and Administration

2009 Barack H. Obama (D) Dianne Feinstein (D-CA) Chair, Rules and Administration

2013 Barack H. Obama (D) Chuck Schumer (D-NY) Chair, Rules and Administration

2017 Donald J. Trump (R) Roy Blunt (R-MO) Chair, Rules and Administration

2021 Joseph R. Biden (D) Roy Blunt (R-MO) Chair, Rules and Administration

2025 Donald J. Trump (R) Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) Chair (118^th Congress), Rules and Administration^g

Sources: U.S. Congress, Joint Congressional Committee on Inaugural Ceremonies, “Past Committees,” https://www.inaugural.senate.gov/past-committees; Garrison Nelson, Committees in the U.S. Congress 1947- 1992, Volume 2: Committee Histories and Member Assignments (Washington: Congressional Quarterly, 1994); and David T. Cannon, Garrison Nelson, and Charles Steward III, Committees in the U.S. Congress 1789-1946, Volume 3: Member Assignments (Washington: CQ Press, 2002); and U.S. Congress, Joint Congressional Committee on Inaugural Ceremonies, “The JCCIC,” at https://www.inaugural.senate.gov/the-jccic. Notes: a. Senator W. Murray Crane was the chair of the Committee on Rules in the 62^nd Congress (1911-1913). In the 1912 election, the Democrats became the majority party for the 63^rd Congress (1913-1915). Senator Crane remained as Joint Inaugural Committee chair, despite being a minority committee member.

b. Senator George H. Moses was the third-ranking Republican on the Committee on Rules.

c. In November 1948, Senator Ablen W. Barkely was elected Vice President. Subsequently, Senator Carl T. Hayden was appointed to replace Senator Barkley on the committee. As a result of the 1948 election, the Democratic Party won control of the Senate, and Senator Hayden succeeded Senator C. Wayland Brooks as chair.

d. On January 6, 1953, following the Republican Party gaining control of the Senate as a result of the 1952 election, Senator Styles Bridges replaced Senator Carl T. Hayden as chair.

e. On August 2, 1972, Senator Howard W. Cannon replaced Senator B. Everett Jordan as chair after Senator Jordan was not renominated for the Senate by the North Carolina Democratic Party. Prior to replacing Senator Jordan as chair, Senator Cannon was the second-ranked Democrat on the Rules and Administration Committee.

f. On January 5, 1981, Senator Claiborne Pell stepped aside as chair, when the Republicans became the majority party in the Senate. Senator Mark Hatfield became chair, and Senator Pell remained on the committee as the fourth Senator pursuant to S.Con.Res. 2 (97^th Congress).

g. Senator Amy Klobuchar had been the chair of the Committee on Rules and Administration in the 118^th Congress, when Congress authorized the Joint Inaugural Committee. In the 119^th Congress, Senator Klobuchar continued to serve as chair of the JCCIC following a change in Senate party majority.

Inaugural Chairs Other than the Chair of the Senate Committee on Rules and Administration

The chair of the Joint Inaugural Committee in 1901, 1929, 1933, 1953, 1957, 1961, 1969, 1981, and 2025 was a Senator other than the current chair of the Senate Committee on Rules or the Senate Committee on Rules and Administration. The following section summarizes each of these instances.

1901

The 1901 Joint Inaugural Committee chair, Senator Marcus A. Hanna, was the chair of the Senate Committee on Relations with Canada in the 56^th Congress (1899-1901). Senator Hanna was a close political confidant of President William McKinley, having served as his national party chair

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and campaign manager in the 1896 election.²⁴ The Committee on Rules was represented on the Joint Inaugural Committee by Senator John C. Spooner, who was committee chair.²⁵

1929

For the 1929 inauguration, Senator George H. Moses served as the chair of the Joint Inaugural Committee. Senator Moses was the third-ranking Republican on the Committee on Rules and chair of the Committee on Post Office and Post Roads.²⁶ The two other Senators on the Joint Inaugural Committee were also members of the Committee on Rules. Senator Frederick Hale was the second-ranking Republican on the committee, and Senator Lee S. Overman was the ranking member.²⁷

1933

The composition of the 1933 inaugural committee was complicated by the 1932 election, when party control of the Senate switched from the Republicans to the Democrats. The incumbent, 72^nd Congress (1931-1933)—with a Republican Senate majority—ended its term “just prior to noon” on Inauguration Day. Senator Joseph T. Robinson, chair of the Joint Inaugural Committee, had been ranking minority member of the Committee on Rules in the 72^nd Congress. At the time of the inauguration, however, he had become majority leader of the Senate for the 73^rd Congress (1933-1934). Senator George H. Moses, the chair of the Committee on Rules for the 72^nd Congress, was also a member of the inaugural committee, although his term of office ended minutes prior to the inauguration. The other Senator, Frederick Hale, was the second-ranking Republican on the Committee on Rules in the 72^nd Congress.²⁸

1953

Party control shifted in the Senate as a result of the 1952 elections. On January 6, 1953, when the Republicans assumed control of the Senate, Senator Styles Bridges succeeded Senator Carl T. Hayden as chair of the Joint Inaugural Committee for the 83^rd Congress (1953-1954).²⁹ Senator Bridges also served as President pro tempore of the Senate and was chair of the Appropriations Committee in the 83^rd Congress. Senator Bridges never served on the Committee on Rules and Administration.³⁰ After relinquishing the chair of the Joint Inaugural Committee, Senator Hayden, who was chair of the Rules and Administration Committee in the 82^nd Congress (1951-1952) and ranking member of this committee for the 83^rd Congress (1953-1954), continued to serve as a member of the Joint Inaugural Committee.³¹

1957

Senator Styles Bridges returned as chair of the Joint Inaugural Committee for President Dwight D. Eisenhower’s second inauguration. Even though the Democrats were the majority party in the

24 Herbert Croly, Marcus Alonzo Hanna: His Life and Work (Hamden, CT: Archon Books, 1965).

25 U.S. Congress, Congressional Directory, 56th Cong., 1st sess. (Washington: GPO, 1900), pp. 141-148.

26 U.S. Congress, Congressional Directory, 70th Cong., 2nd sess. (Washington: GPO, 1928), p. 208.

27 Ibid., pp. 198-203.

28 Garrison Nelson, Committees in the U.S. Congress 1947-1992, Volume 2: Committee Histories and Member Assignments (Washington: Congressional Quarterly, 1994).

29 Ibid., p. 960.

30 Ibid., pp. 99-101.

31 U.S. Congress, Congressional Directory, 83rd Cong., 1st sess. (Washington: GPO, 1953), p. 198.

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85^th Congress (1957-1958), Senator Bridges was designated chair of the committee and was the only Republican appointee.³² Senator Theodore F. Green, chair of the Committee on Rules and Administration, also served on the Joint Inaugural Committee.³³

1961

For President John F. Kennedy’s inauguration in 1961, Senator John J. Sparkman served as chair of the Joint Inaugural Committee. At that time, Senator Sparkman served as chair of the Committee on Small Business, and had never served on the Committee on Rules and Administration. Senator Sparkman had previously served as a member of the Joint Inaugural Committee for the second inauguration of President Eisenhower in 1957.³⁴ Senator Carl T. Hayden, the other Democratic member, also served as the second-ranking majority member of the Committee on Rules and Administration.³⁵

1969

In the 91^st Congress (1969-1970), Senator Everett M. Dirksen was the Senate minority leader and ranking member of the Judiciary Committee when he was appointed chair of the Joint Inaugural Committee. Senator Dirksen had served as minority leader since the 86^th Congress (1959-1960), and had served as a member of the Senate Rules and Administration Committee in the 82^nd Congress (1951-1952) as well as the 87^th Congress (1961-1962). He had not served on a previous inaugural committee.³⁶ Representing the Committee on Rules and Administration was its chair, Senator B. Everett Jordan.³⁷

1981

As a result of the 1980 elections, party control in the Senate switched from the Democrats to the Republicans. Senator Claiborne Pell, the chair of the Committee on Rules and Administration, had been chosen chair of the Joint Inaugural Committee prior to the election. On January 6, 1981, the Senate passed S.Con.Res. 2,³⁸ to amend the concurrent resolution of the prior Congress that set up the Joint Inaugural Committee and to expand its membership to four Senators and four Representatives. Named to the additional Senate slot and serving as the new chair was Mark Hatfield, the ranking minority member of the Committee on Rules and Administration in the 96^th Congress (1979-1980). The other three Senators, Howard H. Baker, Robert C. Byrd, and Claiborne Pell, also were members of the Committee on Rules and Administration.³⁹

2025

As a result of the 2024 election, party control in the Senate switched from the Democrats to the Republicans. Senator Amy Klobuchar, the chair of the Committee on Rules and Administration in

32 Nelson, pp. 99-101.

33 U.S. Congress, Congressional Directory, 84th Cong., 2nd sess. (Washington: GPO, 1956), p. 230.

34 Nelson, pp. 834-835.

35 U.S. Congress, Congressional Directory, 86th Cong., 2nd sess. (Washington: GPO, 1960), p. 239.

36 Nelson, pp. 236-238.

37 U.S. Congress, Congressional Directory, 90th Cong., 2nd sess. (Washington: GPO, 1968), p. 254.

38 S.Con.Res. 2 (97th Cong.), agreed to January 6, 1981. Pursuant to the resolution, Sen. Pell continued as a member of the joint inaugural committee. See also, Sen. Mark Hatfield, “Resolution to Provide for the Continuation of the Joint Committee on Inaugural Ceremonies,” Senate debate, Congressional Record, vol. 127, part 1 (January 5, 1981), p. 10.

39 U.S. Congress, Congressional Directory, 97th Cong., 1st sess. (Washington: GPO, 1981), p. 263.

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the 118^th Congress, had been chosen chair of the Joint Inaugural Committee prior to the election.⁴⁰ On January 3, 2025, the House and Senate agreed to S.Con.Res. 1, to reauthorize the Joint Inaugural Committee. Following the Joint Inaugural Committee’s reauthorization, Senator Klobuchar remained as chair of the JCCIC.⁴¹

Linkage Between Joint Inaugural Committee Chair and President-Elect’s Party

For 24 of the 32 inaugurations between 1901 and 2025, the party controlling the Senate at the time of the inauguration was also the party of the President-elect. This was not the case in 1933, 1957, 1969, 1973, 1989, 1997, and 2021. In the first four instances (1933, 1957, 1969, and 1973), a Joint Inaugural Committee member from the Senate minority party was chosen to be the chair (or cochair) of the Joint Inaugural Committee. In 1989, 1997, and 2021 a member of the Senate majority party at the time of the inauguration (and not a member of the President-elect’s party) chaired the Joint Inaugural Committee.⁴² In 2025, the President-elect was from the same party as the Senate majority. The chair of the Joint Inaugural Committee, however, had been the chair of the Committee on Rules and Administration in the 118^th Congress, and had been named chair of the Joint Inaugural Committee in that Congress. See the Appendix for a full list of the members of the Joint Inaugural Committee on Inauguration Day since 1901.

Committee Staffing

Although the Senate and House have had equal membership on the Joint Inaugural Committee for more than a century, the committee has always been chaired by a Senator. Additionally, the panel has always included at least one member of Senate Committee on Rules (1901-1945), or the Senate Committee on Rules and Administration (1949-2009). The repeated involvement of members of the Senate Rules Committee or the Committee on Rules and Administration in the work of the Joint Inaugural Committee reflects some of the key responsibilities assigned to the committee.

Since 1947, pursuant to the Legislative Reorganization Act of 1946, the Rules and Administration Committee—under Senate Rule XXV—has had jurisdiction over “[f]ederal elections generally, including the election of the President, Vice President, and Members of the Congress.”⁴³ Rule XXV further gives the committee authority over matters relating to the “payment of money out of

40 “Appointment,” Congressional Record, daily edition, vol. 170 (May 21, 2024), p. S3800.

41 U.S. Congress, Joint Congressional Committee on Inaugural Ceremonies, “The JCCIC,” https://www.inaugural.senate.gov/the-jccic; and U.S. Congress, Joint Congressional Committee on Inaugural Ceremonies, “JCCIC Announces Tickets and Public Access for the 60^th Inaugural Ceremonies,” press release, January 13, 2025, https://www.inaugural.senate.gov/press_release/jccic-announces-tickets-and-public-access-for-60th- inaugural-ceremonies.

42 In 2021, the majority party in the Senate shifted after the inaugural ceremony, following the swearing in of three new Senators on January 20, 2021. For more information, see C-SPAN, “New Democratic Senators Ossoff, Warnock, and Padilla Sworn In,” January 20, 2021, at https://www.c-span.org/video/?c4939966/democratic-senators-ossoff-warnock- padilla-sworn.

43 P.L. 79-601, 60 Stat. 812-852, August 2, 1946. Also, see U.S. Congress, Senate Committee on Rules and Administration, History of the Committee on Rules and Administration, United States Senate, prepared by Floyd M. Riddick, Parliamentarian Emeritus of the Senate, with the assistance of Louise M. McPherson, Research Assistant, 96^th Cong., 2^nd sess., S.Doc. 96-27 (Washington: GPO, 1980), p. 60; and U.S. Senate, Standing Rules of the Senate, “Rule XXV cl. 1 (n)(1)(5),” 110^th Cong., 1^st sess., S.Doc. 110-9 (Washington: GPO, 2007), p. 26. Pursuant to House Rule X, clause 1(k)(12), the Committee on House Administration has identical authority over the “election of the President, [and] Vice President ... ” as the Senate Committee on Rules and Administration. For more information, see U.S. Congress, House, Constitution, Jefferson’s Manual, and Rules of the House of Representatives of the United States, One Hundred Twelfth Congress, 111^th Cong., 2^nd sess., H.Doc. 111-157 (Washington: GPO, 2011), §724, p. 454.

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the contingent fund of the Senate or creating a charge upon the same,”⁴⁴ thereby granting the panel authority over the miscellaneous costs (e.g., Capitol Police security costs) associated with the inauguration. Prior to 1947, the precise legislative responsibilities of committees were not enumerated in Senate rules. Committee jurisdictions were determined by committee name and by precedent.

Measures establishing the Joint Inaugural Committee have never authorized the employment of specialized staff.⁴⁵ Between 1901 and 1992, Congress approved two quadrennial funding resolutions for the inauguration—one covering the expenses associated with the inaugural ceremonies, which stipulated the amount of funds being appropriated for the Joint Inaugural Committee to make arrangements for the official ceremony on Capitol Hill; and the other providing funds for the District of Columbia to maintain public order and provide fire protection. The funds appropriated for the Joint Inaugural Committee were used to construct the inaugural platform, to prepare seating for those attending the swearing-in of the President and Vice President, and to reimburse other entities for salaries and expenses incurred in arranging the inaugural ceremonies.⁴⁶

Only since 1996 have the funds appropriated for the Joint Inaugural Committee included specific language authorizing the committee to reimburse the Senate Committee on Rules and Administration for staff detailed to assist in the inaugural preparations.⁴⁷ For the 2009 inauguration the resolution provided the following:

That the compensation of any employee of the Committee on Rules and Administration of the Senate who has been designated to perform service with respect to the inaugural ceremonies of 2009 shall continue to be paid by the Committee on Rules and Administration, but the account from which such staff member is paid may be reimbursed for the services of the staff member (including agency contributions when appropriate) out of funds made available under this heading.⁴⁸

While the appropriations language prior to 1996 did not specify the use of Rules and Administration staff, William Cochrane, the staff director of the Senate Rules and Administration

44 Rule XXV, cl. 1 (n)(1)(8).

45 A typical concurrent resolution creating the joint committee states: “Resolved by the Senate (the House of Representatives concurring), That a joint Congressional Committee on Inaugural Ceremonies consisting of three Senators and three Representatives, to be appointed by the President of the Senate and the Speaker of the House of Representatives, respectively, is authorized to make the necessary arrangements for the inaugural of the President-elect and Vice President-elect of the United States on the 20^th day of January 2009.” See S.Con.Res. 67 (110^th Cong.), agreed to by the House on February 28, 2008 and agreed to by the Senate on February 8, 2008, “Establishing the Joint Congressional Committee on Inaugural Ceremonies,” House debate, Congressional Record, vol. 154 (February 28, 2008), pp. 1164-1165.

46 For example, the appropriations language for 1989 read as follows: “For construction of platform and seating stands and for salaries and expenses of conducting the inaugural ceremonies of the President and Vice President of the United States, January 20, 1989, in accordance with such program as may be adopted by the joint committee authorized by Senate Concurrent Resolution 105, One Hundredth Congress, agreed to March 18, 1988, $775,000, to remain available until September 30, 1989. Such funds shall be available for such salaries (when paid on a reimbursable basis) and expenses, whether incurred on, before, or after, October 1, 1988.” Also, see P.L. 100-458, 102 Stat. 2166, October 1, 1988.

47 P.L. 104-197, 110 Stat. 2400, September 16, 1996; P.L. 106-520, 114 Stat. 2436, November 15, 2000; P.L. 108-83, 117 Stat. 1019, September 30, 2003; and P.L. 110-161, 121 Stat. 2226, December 27, 2007.

48 P.L. 110-161, 121 Stat. 2226, December 27, 2007.

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Committee for many years, is known to have served also as executive director of the Joint Inaugural Committee, or consultant to it, for the inaugurations from 1973 through 1985.⁴⁹

Committee Funding

The Joint Inaugural Committee has historically received appropriated funds. In nominal dollars, the committee has received between $1.237 million and $3.675 million per inauguration since 2005. This money can be used for “salaries and expenses associated with conducting the inaugural ceremonies of the President and Vice President of the United States,” is disbursed by the Secretary of the Senate, and, for the 2025 inauguration, remains available until September 30, 2025.⁵⁰ Table 4 shows the appropriations received by the Joint Inaugural Committee from the 2005-2025 inaugurations, both in nominal and constant dollars, and the appropriations law citation.

Table 4. Joint Congressional Committee on Inaugural Ceremonies Appropriations

2005-2025

Inauguration

Year

Appropriations

(Nominal)

Appropriations

(Constant)^a Citation

2025 $3.675 million $3.675 million P.L. 118-47, 138 Stat. 717 (2024)

2021 $1.5 million $1.77 million P.L. 116-94, 133 Stat. 2761 (2019)

2017 $1.25 million $1.59 million P.L. 114-113; 129 Stat. 2661 (2015)

2013 $1.237 million $1.66 million P.L. 112-74; 125 Stat. 1123 (2011)

2009 $1.24 million $1.80 million P.L. 110-161; 121 Stat. 2226 (2007)

2005 $1.25 million $2.00 million P.L. 108-83; 117 Stat. 1019 (2003)

Source: CRS analysis of appropriations laws. Notes: a. Constant appropriations figures were calculated using the Bureau of Labor Statistics CPI Inflation Calculator at https://data.bls.gov/cgi-bin/cpicalc.pl. Calculations were done using January 2024 data for consistency.

Inaugural Activities

The Joint Inaugural Committee has traditionally been responsible for two major inaugural activities: arranging the swearing-in ceremony and hosting an inaugural luncheon. These two functions are coordinated with the President-elect’s inaugural committee, and both traditionally occur at the U.S. Capitol.

Swearing-In Ceremony

In 1801, President-elect Thomas Jefferson became the first President to take the oath of office at the newly completed Capitol building. On March 2, 1801, President-elect Jefferson wrote to the Senate proposing the date, time, and place of his swearing-in ceremony. “I beg leave, through

49 Sen. Claiborne Pell, “William Mc. Cochrane: Historical Consultant,” remarks in the Senate, Congressional Record, daily edition, vol. 141, part 3 (February 10, 1995), p. 4428. See also, U.S. President (Gerald R. Ford), “The Daily Diary of President Gerald R. Ford,” President’s Daily Diary Collection, January 20, 1977, box 85, Gerald R. Ford Presidential Library, p. 4, http://www.fordlibrarymuseum.gov/library/document/0036/pdd770120.pdf.

50 P.L. 118-47, 138 Stat. 717 (2024).

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you, to inform the honorable Senate of the United States that I propose to take the oath which the Constitution prescribes to the President of the United States, before he enters on the execution of his office, on Wednesday, the 4^th instant, at 12 o’clock, in the Senate Chamber.”⁵¹ Since that time, the presidential and vice presidential oath of office has usually been administered at the U.S. Capitol.

Oversight of the inaugural platform’s construction has been one of the Joint Inaugural Committee’s primary quadrennial responsibilities. The platform is designed to hold more than 1,600 people—including the President and Vice President-elect, Members of Congress, Supreme Court Justices, the outgoing President and Vice President, former Presidents, the Joint Chiefs of Staff, governors, and other dignitaries. The platform is built from scratch for each inauguration by the Architect of the Capitol, and is fully American with Disabilities Act compliant.⁵²

Beginning in 1981, for President Ronald Reagan’s first inauguration, the inaugural ceremony has been held on the West Front Steps of the Capitol. Prior to 1981, outdoor inaugural ceremonies were held on the East Front of the Capitol. The ceremony was moved to the West Front because it “could accommodate more visitors.”⁵³

Inaugural Luncheon

Following the inaugural ceremony, the Joint Inaugural Committee typically hosts a luncheon for the President and Vice President in National Statuary Hall. “Often featuring cuisine reflecting the home states of the new President and Vice-President ... the Luncheon program includes speeches, gift presentations ... and toasts to the new administration.”⁵⁴

The tradition of hosting a luncheon dates to 1897.⁵⁵ Since 1953, the Joint Inaugural Committee has customarily hosted the luncheon quadrennially.⁵⁶ The luncheon is generally a multiple-course meal that features a specific painting, chosen to reflect the inauguration’s official theme,

51 “Proceedings,” Annals of Congress, vol. 10 (March 2, 1801), p. 756. For a recounting of the 1801 Inauguration, also see “Proceedings,” Annals of Congress, vol. 10 (March 4, 1801), pp. 762-766.

52 U.S. Congress, Joint Congressional Committee on Inaugural Ceremonies, “Inaugural Platform,” https://www.inaugural.senate.gov/inaugural-platform.

53 U.S. Congress, Joint Congressional Committee on Inaugural Ceremonies, “49th Inaugural Ceremonies,” https://www.inaugural.senate.gov/49th-inaugural-ceremonies.

54 U.S. Congress, Joint Congressional Committee on Inaugural Ceremonies, “Inaugural Luncheon” https://www.inaugural.senate.gov/inaugural-luncheon.

55 U.S. Congress, Joint Congressional Committee on Inaugural Ceremonies, “Inaugural Luncheon.”

56 Paul F. Boller Jr., Presidential Inauguration (Harcourt, Inc., 2001), p. 172. In 2021, the inaugural luncheon was not held due to concerns related to the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. A search of the Joint Inaugural Committee web page (https://inaugural.senate.gov) and other congressional sources did not locate an official announcement about the cancellation of the inaugural luncheon. Press reports provide statements by a Joint Inaugural Committee communications director that the luncheon was cancelled. For example, see Chris Cioffi, “The Inaugural Luncheon is the Latest Pandemic Casualty,” Roll Call, December 29, 2020, at https://www.rollcall.com/2020/12/29/ the-inaugural-luncheon-is-the-latest-pandemic-casualty; and Marylou Tousignat, “A President Inauguration for the History Books,” Washington Post, January 20, 2021, at https://www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/kidspost/a- presidential-inauguration-for-the-history-books/2021/01/19/7f0cc75c-5121-11eb-bda4-615aaefd0555_story.html. For President Joseph Biden’s 2021 inauguration, the luncheon would have featured the painting “Landscape with Rainbow” by Robert S. Duncanson. Nora McGreevy, “Biden’s ‘Poignant’ Inaugural Painting,” Smithsonian Magazine, January 21, 2021, at https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/what-know-about-president-joe-bidens-inaugural-painting- landscape-rainbow-180976803. See also, X.com, Joint Congressional Committee on Inaugural Ceremonies, “The 59^th Inaugural Paining, ‘Landscape with Rainbow’ by Robert S. Duncanson, is revealed,” January 20, 2021, at https://x.com/JCCIC/status/1351957019452911616.

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displayed behind the dais.⁵⁷ For President Donald Trump’s 2025 inauguration, the luncheon featured the painting “American Horizon” by Jane Wilson.⁵⁸

Conclusion

Since 1901, when the first Joint Congressional Committee on Inaugural Ceremonies was authorized, both the House and Senate have played a prominent role in the organization and execution of the inaugural ceremony. While prior to 1901, the Senate organized the inauguration and invited Members of the House to participate, today the House and Senate both have a formal role in celebrating the transition of power from one President to the next.

The House and Senate, through the Joint Inaugural Committee, organize and implement the arrangements for the presidential and vice presidential inauguration. In recent years, the inaugural ceremony has been held at the U.S. Capitol, with the swearing-in ceremony on the West Front Steps and special events typically held in the Rotunda and Emancipation Hall of the Capitol Visitor Center. However, in 2025, the inaugural ceremony was held in the Capitol Rotunda due to cold temperatures in Washington, DC.

57 U.S. Congress, Senate, “Inaugural Luncheon,” at https://www.senate.gov/artandhistory/art/common/collection_list/ inaugural_luncheons.htm.

58 “Iowa artist Jane Wilson’s Painting Featured at Trump Inaugural Luncheon in Capitol,” Iowa News Now, January 20, 2025, https://cbs2iowa.com/news/local/iowa-artist-jane-wilsons-painting-featured-at-trump-inaugural-luncheon-in- capitol; and Josie Thaddeus-Johns, “Jane Wilson Painting Takes Center Stage at Trump Inauguration Luncheon,” Artsy.net, January 21, 2025, https://www.artsy.net/article/artsy-editorial-jane-wilson-painting-takes-center-stage-trump- inauguration-luncheon.

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Appendix. Joint Committee Membership on Inauguration Day

Table A-1. Joint Inaugural Committee Membership on Inauguration Day

Year Chair

Senate

Majority

Senate

Minority House Majority House Minority

President William McKinley (R)

1901 Marcus A. Hanna (R-OH)

John C. Spooner (R-WI)

James K. Jones (D-AR)

Joseph G. Cannon (R-IL) John Dalzell (R- PA)

Thomas C. McRae (D-AR)

President Theodore Roosevelt (R)

1905 John C. Spooner (R- WI)

Nelson W. Aldrich (R-RI)

Augustus O. Bacon (D-GA)

John Dalzell (R- PA) Edgar D. Crumpacker (R- IN)

John S. Williams (D-MS)

President William Taft (R)

1909 Philander C. Knox (R-PA)

Henry Cabot Lodge (R-MA)

Augustus O. Bacon (D-GA)

James F. Burke (R- PA) Horace O. Young (R-MI)

John W. Gaines (D-TN)

President Woodrow Wilson (D)

1913 W. Murray Crane (R-MA)

Augustus O. Bacon (D-GA) Lee S. Overman (D-NC)

———a William W. Rucker (D-MO) Finis J. Garrett (D- TN)

William B. McKinley (R-IL)

1917 Lee S. Overman (D- NC)

Hoke Smith (D- GA)

Francis E. Warren (R-WY)

William W. Rucker (D-MO) Finis J. Garrett (D- TN)

William B. McKinley (R-IL)

President Warren Harding (R)

1921 Philander C. Knox (R-PA)

Knute Nelson (R-MN)

Lee S. Overman (D-NC)

Joseph G. Cannon (R-IL) Charles F. Reavis (R-NE)

Charles M. Stedman (D-NC)^b

President Calvin Coolidge (R)

1925 Charles Curtis (R- KS)

Frederick Hale (R-ME)

Lee S. Overman (D-NC)

William W. Griest (R-PA) Lindley H. Hadley (R-WA)

Arthur B. Rouse (D-KY)

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Year Chair

Senate

Majority

Senate

Minority House Majority House Minority

President Herbert Hoover (R)

1929 George H. Moses (R-NH)

Frederick Hale (R-ME)

Lee S. Overman (D-NC)

Bertrand H. Snell (R-NY) Leonidas C. Dyer (R-MO)

Edward W. Pou (D-NC)

President Franklin D. Roosevelt (D)

1933 Joseph T. Robinson (D-AR)

George H. Moses (R-NH) Frederick Hale (R-ME)

———c Edward W. Pou (D-NC) Henry T. Rainey (D-IL)

Bertrand H. Snell (R-NY)

1937 Matthew M. Neely (D-WV)

Joseph T. Robinson (D-AR)

Frederick Hale (R-ME)

John J. O’Connor (D-NY) Robert L. Doughton (D-NC)

Bertrand H. Snell (R-NY)

1941 Matthew M. Neely (D-WV)

Alben W. Barkley (D-KY)

Charles L. McNary (R-OR)

Sam Rayburn (D- TX) Robert L. Doughton (D-NC)

Joseph W. Martin (R-MA)

1945 Harry F. Byrd (D- VA)

Kenneth McKellar (D-TN)

Arthur Vandenberg (R- MI)

Sam Rayburn (D- TX) Robert L. Doughton (D-NC)

Joseph W. Martin (R-MA)

President Harry S. Truman (D)

1949 Carl T. Hayden (D- AZ)^d

J. Howard McGrath (D-RI)^e

Kenneth S. Wherry (R-NE)

Harry R. Sheppard (D-CA)^f John W. McCormack (D- MA)

Charles A. Halleck (R-IN)

President Dwight D. Eisenhower (R)

1953 Styles Bridges (R- NH)

Herman Welker (R-ID)^a

Carl T. Hayden (D-AZ)

Leslie C. Arends (R-IL) Joseph W. Martin (R-MA)

Sam Rayburn (D- TX)

1957 Styles Bridges (R- NH)

John J. Sparkman (D-AL) Theodore F. Green (D-RI)

———h Sam Rayburn (D- TX) John W. McCormack (D- MA)

Joseph W. Martin (R-MA)

President John F. Kennedy (D)

1961 John J. Sparkman (D-AL)

Carl T. Hayden (D-AZ)ⁱ

Styles Bridges (R-NH)

Sam Rayburn (D- TX) John W. McCormack (D- MA)

Charles A. Halleck (R-IN)

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Year Chair

Senate

Majority

Senate

Minority House Majority House Minority

President Lyndon B. Johnson (D)

1965 B. Everett Jordan (D-NC)

John J. Sparkman (D-AL)

Leverett Saltonstall (R- MA)

John W. McCormack (D- MA) Carl B. Albert (D- OK)

Gerald R. Ford (R- MI)

President Richard M. Nixon (R)

1969 Everett M. Dirksen (R-IL)

B. Everett Jordan (D-NC) Michael J. Mansfield (D- MT)

———j John W. McCormack (D- MA) Carl B. Albert (D- OK)

Gerald R. Ford (R- MI)

1973 Howard W. Cannon (D-NV)^k

Michael J. Mansfield (D- MT)

Marlow W. Cook (R-KY)^l

Carl B. Albert (D- OK) Thomas P. O’Neill (D-MA)^m

Gerald R. Ford (R- MI)

President Jimmy Carter (D)

1977 Howard W. Cannon (D-NV)

Robert C. Byrd (D-WV)

Mark Hatfield (R- OR)

Thomas P. O’Neill (D-MA) James C. Wright (D-TX)

John J. Rhodes (R- AZ)

President Ronald Reagan (R)

1981 Mark Hatfield (R- OR)

Howard H. Baker (R-TN)

Robert C. Byrd (D-WV) Claiborne Pell (D-RI)ⁿ

Thomas P. O’Neill (D-MA) James C. Wright (D-TX)

John J. Rhodes (R- AZ) Robert H. Michel (R-IL)^o

1985 Charles McC. Mathias (R-MD)

Howard H. Baker (R-TN)

Wendell H. Ford (D-KY)

Thomas P. O’Neill (D-MA) James C. Wright (D-TX)

Robert H. Michel (R-IL)

President George H. W. Bush (R)

1989 Wendell H. Ford (D-KY)

Robert C. Byrd (D-WV)

Ted Stevens (R- AK)

James C. Wright (D-TX) Thomas S. Foley (D-WA)

Robert H. Michel (R-IL)

President Bill Clinton (D)

1993 Wendell H. Ford (D-KY)

George J. Mitchell (D-ME)

Ted Stevens (R- AK)

Thomas S. Foley (D-WA) Richard A. Gephardt (D-MO)

Robert H. Michel (R-IL)

1997 John Warner (R- VA)

Trent Lott (R- MS)

Wendell H. Ford (D-KY)

Newt Gingrich (R- GA) Richard K. Armey (R-TX)

Richard A. Gephardt (D-MO)

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Year Chair

Senate

Majority

Senate

Minority House Majority House Minority

President George W. Bush (R)

2001 Mitch McConnell (R-KY)

Trent Lott (R- MS)

Christopher Dodd (D-CT)

J. Dennis Hastert (R-IL) Richard K. Armey (R-TX)

Richard A. Gephardt (D-MO)

2005 Trent Lott (R-MS) William Frist (R- TN)

Christopher Dodd (D-CT)

J. Dennis Hastert (R-IL) Tom DeLay (R- TX)

Nancy Pelosi (D- CA)

President Barack Obama (D)

2009 Dianne Feinstein (D-CA)

Harry Reid (D- NV)

Bob Bennett (R- UT)

Nancy Pelosi (D- CA) Steny Hoyer (D- MD)

John Boehner (R- OH)

2013 Chuck Schumer (D- NY)

Harry Reid (D- NV)

Lamar Alexander (R-TN)

John Boehner (R- OH Eric Cantor (R- VA)

Nancy Pelosi (D- CA)

President Donald Trump (R)

2017 Roy Blunt (R-MO) Mitch McConnell (R-KY)

Chuck Schumer (D-NY)

Paul Ryan (R-WI) Kevin McCarthy (R-CA)

Nancy Pelosi (D- CA)

President Joseph Biden (D)

2021 Roy Blunt (R-MO) Mitch McConnell (R-KY)

Amy Klobuchar (D-MN)

Nancy Pelosi (D- CA) Steny Hoyer (D- MD)

Kevin McCarthy (R-CA)

President Donald Trump (R)

2025 Amy Klobuchar (D- MN)

Deb Fischer (R- NE)

Chuck Schumer (D-NY)

Mike Johnson (R- LA) Steve Scalise (R- LA)

Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY)

Source: U.S. Congress, Joint Congressional Committee on Inaugural Ceremonies, “Inaugural Committees,” https://www.inaugural.senate.gov/about/past-committees; and U.S. Congress, Joint Congressional Committee on Inaugural Ceremonies, “The JCCIC,” https://www.inaugural.senate.gov/the-jccic. Notes: All chairs of the Joint Inaugural Committee are Senators. a. The minority party Senator of the committee also served as the chair.

b. Representative Charles M. Stedman replaced Representative William W. Rucker, who resigned from the committee.

c. The minority party Senator of the committee also served as the chair.

d. Senator Carl T. Hayden replaced Senator Ablen W. Barkely, who was elected Vice President.

e. Senator J. Howard McGrath replaced Senator C. Wayland Brooks, who did not win reelection to the Senate.

f. Representative Harry R. Sheppard replaced Representative Leslie C. Arends, who was removed from the committee when the Democrats won the House majority.

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g. Senator Herman Welker replaced Senator Margaret Chase Smith, who resigned from the committee. Senator Smith had earlier replaced Senator Ernest W. McFarland, who resigned from the committee.

h. The minority party Senator of the committee also served as the chair.

i. Senator Carl T. Hayden replaced Senator Thomas Hennings, who died in office.

j. The minority party Senator of the committee also served as the chair.

k. Senator Howard W. Cannon replaced Senator B. Everett Jordan as chair after Senator Jordan was not renominated for the Senate by the North Carolina Democratic Party.

l. Senator Marlow W. Cook was designated cochair of the committee.

m. Representative Thomas P. O’Neill replaced Representative T. Hale Boggs, who was presumed to have been

killed in an airplane crash.

n. Senator Claiborne Pell stepped aside as chair on January 5, 1981, when the Republicans became the majority party in the Senate. Senator Mark Hatfield became the chair, and Senator Pell remained on the committee as a fourth Senator pursuant to S.Con.Res. 2 (97^th Congress).

o. On November 12, 1980, the Speaker of the House appointed Representatives John J. Rhodes, Thomas P. O’Neill, and James C. Wright to the Joint Inaugural Committee. When the House Members were reappointed on January 6, 1981, the Speaker of the House, breaking with precedent, appointed four Members (Representatives Rhodes, O’Neill, and Wright, plus Representative Robert H. Michel) to the Joint Inaugural Committee. S.Con.Res. 2 (97^th Congress), agreed to January 6, 1981. Pursuant to the resolution, Senator Pell continued as a member of the joint inaugural committee. See also, Senator Mark Hatfield, “Resolution to Provide for the Continuation of the Joint Committee on Inaugural Ceremonies,” Senate debate, Congressional Record, vol. 127, part 1 (January 5, 1981), p. 10.

Author Information

Jacob R. Straus Specialist on the Congress

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