President Pro Tempore of the United States Senate

The President Pro Tempore of the United States Senate, also known as the President Pro Tempore or PPT, is the second-highest-ranking official of the United States Senate behind the Vice President, or President of the Senate, and is the typical presiding officer of the Senate. The President Pro Tempore is elected by members of the Senate, and is almost always held by the majority party. As per the Presidential Succession Act of 1947, the PPT is third in the line of succession to the presidency, after the Vice President and the Speaker of the House of Representatives and ahead of the Secretary of State.

The current President Pro Tempore of the Senate is Class I Dixie Senator Bruce Hill. He is a Laborite and was elected January 18, 2020. He was elected PPT after Senator Hale resigned amidst controversy against him.

History of the Position

The president pro tempore of the United States Senate (often shortened to president pro tem) is the second-highest-ranking official of the United States Senate. Article One, Section Three of the United States Constitution provides that the vice president of the United States is the president of the Senate (despite not being a senator), and mandates that the Senate must choose a president pro tempore to act in the vice president's absence. Unlike the vice president, the president pro tempore is an elected member of the Senate, able to speak or vote on any issue. Selected by the Senate at large, the president pro tempore has enjoyed many privileges and some limited powers.[2] During the vice president's absence, the president pro tempore is empowered to preside over Senate sessions. In practice, neither the vice president nor the president pro tempore usually presides; instead, the duty of presiding officer is rotated among junior U.S. senators of the majority party to give them experience in parliamentary procedure.[3]

Since 1890, the most senior U.S. senator in the majority party has generally been chosen to be president pro tempore and holds the office continuously until the election of another. This tradition has been observed without interruption since 1949.[4] Since the enactment of the current Presidential Succession Act in 1947, the president pro tempore is third in the line of succession to the presidency, after the vice president and the speaker of the House of Representatives and ahead of the secretary of state.[5]