Scott becomes longest-serving Black senator

Sen. Tim Scott (R-S.C.) has become the longest-serving Black senator in U.S. history, as the 119th Congress begins Friday.

Scott was appointed to the Senate in 2012 by then-Gov. Nikki Haley (R) after former Sen. Jim DeMint (R) resigned. At the time, he was the first Black Republican senator since 1978 and the first Black Republican senator from the South since Reconstruction.

Before Scott, Republican Sen. Edward Brooke (Mass), who held office from 1967-79, was the longest-serving Black senator. 

This session, Scott will also serve as the first Black chair of a Senate standing committee when he assumes the top spot on the Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs Committee. 

“My goal is simple: make America work for Americans,” Scott said in a statement. “As we get to work cleaning up the mess from the previous administration, I look forward to working with President Trump on his priorities, including paving a path for all Americans to have the necessary tools and resources to achieve their version of the American Dream. We will unlock opportunity, strengthen our nation, and make America the shining city on the Hill again.”

The descendants of enslaved Africans, Scott entered politics in 1994 when he decided to campaign for the Charleston County Council. 

When he was elected in 1995, he was the first Black American elected to any office in South Carolina since 1902. 

Scott continued to make history when, in 2010, he became the first Black Republican from the Palmetto State to serve in the House since 1897.

Scott became a household name when he briefly launched a 2024 bid for the White House, but he soon suspended it and began to stump for President-elect Trump. He has been an ardent supporter since. 

Scott will serve alongside four other Black senators this Congress: Democratic Sens. Raphael Warnock (Ga.), Cory Booker (N.J.), Angela Alsobrooks (Md.) and Lisa Blunt Rochester (Del.). It is the largest group of Black senators serving together at one time.