New Year’s Day marks a month of political events and milestones not seen in Washington for some time.
From the election for Speaker of the House and a memorial service for former President Carter to the start of Trump’s second term and everything that follows, January kicks off 2025 with tone-setting votes and important actions.
The House and Senate seats will have to be filled by Trump’s nomination and Vice Presidential pick by Ohio Sen. J.D. Vance. The process begins in January.
Here’s a look at what you can expect:
January 3: New parliament convenes and speaker of the House is elected.
The 119th Congress convenes at noon Friday with new Republican majorities in both the House and Senate. The chairman election is the first item on the agenda. The House of Representatives cannot conduct any business until the matter is resolved.
House Speaker Mike Johnson is hoping to retain the gavel, and President-elect Trump may have boosted his chances Monday when Trump gave Johnson his full endorsement. But Johnson has an incredibly narrow margin. If everyone attends, it’s as slim as 2 votes. At least one Republican said he would not select Johnson as speaker.
The Senate will have new leadership, with Senator John Thune (RS.D.) taking over as majority leader from Senator Chuck Schumer (DN.Y.).
January 6: Congress certifies the election results.
Congress is scheduled to meet on Monday to count the Electoral College votes, cementing Trump’s victory over Vice President Harris in the 2024 election. Harris will be the first sitting vice president to oversee a calculation of her own election loss since Al Gore in 2002.
January 7-9: Carter memorial service in Washington.
Carter, who died Dec. 29 in Plains, Ga., will be commemorated with events in Georgia and Washington state.
His memorial service begins Saturday when the former Georgia governor will rest for two days at the Carter Presidential Center in Atlanta.
The late president’s family arrives in Washington on the 7th, and the funeral procession heads to the Capitol. Carter is expected to remain in the condition for two days starting that afternoon. Lawmakers will pay their respects at 3 p.m. The Rotunda opens to the public at 7 p.m.
A state funeral will be held at the Washington National Cathedral at 10 a.m. on January 9. President Biden is expected to pay tribute to Carter. Trump said he would attend.
The former president and his family will return to Plains, Georgia for a private funeral and burial.
January 9: Biden travels to Italy.
Biden is scheduled to visit Rome and the Vatican for three days in what is expected to be his final overseas trip as president. He is scheduled to meet Pope Francis, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni and Italian President Sergio Mattarella.
January 10: Supreme Court hears TikTok ban case
The Supreme Court will hear oral arguments on whether a bill that would ban TikTok nationwide violates the First Amendment. The video-sharing platform aims to invalidate or impose a ban on laws requiring a divestment from its Chinese parent company. This law takes effect on January 19.
President Trump has opposed the ban and asked the high court to delay the case until he takes office.
“Only President Trump has the consummate dealmaking expertise, electoral power, and political will to negotiate a resolution to save his platform while addressing national security concerns,” said D. John Sauer, one of Trump’s personal appellate attorneys. “I have it,” he wrote. Sauer, Trump’s pick for attorney general, will lead the government’s defense of the ban.
January 14: Pete Hegseth confirmation hearing.
The Senate Armed Services Committee is scheduled to hold a hearing on Defense Secretary nominee Pete Hegseth on January 14, six days before President Trump’s inauguration. Last month, Hegseth toured the Capitol to woo Republican senators who seemed hesitant about his nomination.
January 20: Trump Inauguration Ceremony
Trump is scheduled to be sworn in as the 47th president of the United States at noon, completing his comeback from the violence of January 6, 2021, the Capitol riot and dozens of federal and state criminal charges.
The president-elect has pledged to sign numerous executive orders on his first day in office that will impact immigration, energy and foreign policy. He also signaled he would act quickly to roll back protections for transgender youth.
January 28: Florida Special Primary Election
Florida will hold two special primaries to fill House seats opened by Trump’s nomination. The general elections for both seats are on April 1.
Rep. Mike Waltz (R-FL), a candidate for national security adviser, plans to resign from his 6th Congressional District seat on January 20. The district will hold both Democratic and Republican primaries.
Former Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-FL) resigned his 1st Congressional District seat on November 13 after being nominated to be Trump’s attorney general. Gaetz withdrew his nomination eight days later after details of the ethics committee report began leaking. The 1st District only holds Republican primaries.
January 30: Democratic National Committee meeting opens.
The ruling Democratic Party will hold its winter general meeting from January 30 to February. 1 includes the election of a new chair. Five candidates are running for leadership positions.
Brett Samuels, Zach Schonfeld, Julia Shapero and Ashleigh Fields contributed.
