Whether Durbin will be chairman of the Judiciary Committee or ranking member will be determined next month because the two Georgia runoff elections will decide which party controls the Senate majority. Democrats also still need to formally approve who their top members on committees will be for the next Congress.
The power struggle marked a rare point of division among a Senate Democratic caucus that has prided itself on unity during the past four years. The battle spilled into public view after it tapped into long-simmering frustrations among younger and newer members about the perceived bottleneck to acquiring top committee and subcommittee positions.