Kevin Warsh was confirmed Wednesday as the next Federal Reserve chairman, taking over the central bank as President Donald Trump pushes to cut interest rates even as new inflation data complicate the debate.
In the most divisive vote yet for the Fed chair, Mr. Warsh, 56, won confirmation to replace Jerome Powell, who has held the top leadership position since 2018 and whose term expires on Friday.
The Senate voted 54-45 to confirm Mr. Warsh, ending a month of turmoil that included a massive search to find Mr. Powell’s successor that began in the summer of 2025. The vote was almost entirely along party lines, with only Sen. John Fetterman, Democrat of Pennsylvania, voting for Mr. Warsh, who would become the 11th Fed chairman of the modern banking era.
Mr. Powell has two years left in his term as governor, and will remain at the Fed. Last month, he said he would remain in office at least until a review of renovations to the Fed’s headquarters is completed. The last time a Fed chair returned to the board was nearly 80 years ago.
President Trump has made no secret that he expects Warsh to cut interest rates after he has repeatedly criticized Powell for monetary policy that the president feels is too restrictive. Warsh was part of a derby that at one point included nearly a dozen candidates, including current governors Christopher Waller and Michelle Bowman.
“The Senate’s confirmation of Kevin Warsh as the next Federal Reserve Chairman is a welcome step toward finally restoring accountability, competence, and trust in the Fed’s decision-making,” White House Press Secretary Khush Desai said in a statement.
But the confirmation follows other reports this week showing that inflation is well above the Fed’s 2% target and pipeline pressures are accelerating to their highest levels in more than three years. The market has dialed back expectations for a rate cut and is even pricing in the possibility of a rate hike this year.
Rep. French Hill (R-Ark.) praised the Fed’s decision and Mr. Warsh’s record on combating inflation.
“Chairman Warsh has repeatedly emphasized the importance of keeping affordability and price stability at the center of our economic agenda,” Hill said in a statement. “His commitment to disciplined monetary policy will help restore confidence in our economy and support our long-term prosperity.”
Warsh could not be reached for comment.
This will be Warsh’s second stint at the Federal Reserve.
He first served as president from 2006 to 2011, during which time Fed officials initially denied the dangers of the subprime mortgage collapse that sparked the global financial crisis and then implemented a historic series of policies aimed at saving the economy. Part of that relief package included an unprecedented expansion of asset purchases that would push the Fed’s balance sheet by more than $4 trillion, a program known as quantitative easing that Warsh argued at the time had gone too far.
Warsh has consistently criticized the Fed’s monetary policy since leaving office, and last year called for “systemic change” at the central bank in an interview with CNBC. During that time, he has also served as a lecturer at Stanford University School of Business and as a member of various boards of directors.
Warsh will replace Stephen Millan, who was appointed as Fed governor in September 2025, to fill the remaining months of Adrianna Kugler’s term after she unexpectedly resigned in August.
Millan has opposed every Federal Open Market Committee vote since taking office. When the committee voted to cut interest rates by a quarter of a percentage point in each of its last three meetings in 2025, Milan expressed support for an even larger cut of half a percentage point. He opposed a vote this year to keep the federal funds rate unchanged and has advocated for a quarter-point cut.
Warsh’s first meeting as FOMC chair is scheduled for June 16-17.
He will also be the richest Fed chairman in history, with assets well over $100 million. As Fed chairman, he will have to divest many of his investments under tough new policies put in place since revelations of questionable trade practices among government officials.
Correction: Congressman French Hill is from Arkansas. Previous versions incorrectly listed the status.
