Senate Clears Cloture on Kevin Warsh Fed Chair Nomination (5:30 PM ET) — Final Confirmation Vote Imminent; Powell Exits May 15

The United States Senate held a cloture vote at 5:30 p.m. ET on May 11, 2026 on Kevin Warsh's nomination as Federal Reserve Chair, clearing the procedural hurdle that paved the way for a final confirmation floor vote later in the week. Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-SD) had filed cloture on April 30, with the Senate Daily Press schedule confirming two roll call votes for May 11: the cloture motion on Warsh as Member of the Board of Governors (Executive Calendar #728) and a separate cloture filing on #727 (Chairman of the Board). With Republicans holding a 53-seat Senate majority and Sen. John Fetterman (D-PA) expected to support Warsh alongside the Republican caucus, confirmation was widely viewed as near-certain. Warsh had cleared the Senate Banking Committee on April 29 in a 13–11 party-line vote — the first fully partisan Fed Chair committee vote in modern history, according to former Fed economist Claudia Sahm. The cloture vote advancement set up Warsh's final floor confirmation before the expiration of Jerome Powell's term as Fed Chair on May 15, 2026. Powell confirmed he would remain on the Fed's Board of Governors as a governor after stepping down as Chair. Warsh, a former Fed governor (2006–2011) and Morgan Stanley investment banker, has signaled openness to interest rate cuts and closer coordination with the White House — positions that have drawn criticism from Democratic senators and some mainstream economists who warn of threats to Fed independence. His first FOMC meeting as Chair was expected at the June 16–17 meeting, where markets anticipated the Fed could signal its first rate cut since the Iran war began.