In such a narrowly divided chamber, the onus will be on the Biden administration not lose a single Democrat. This could limit the scope of his ambitious agenda.
Protesters forcing their way into the Capitol.
Win McNamee/Getty Images News via Getty Images
It is often said that Joe Biden's ability to govern will depend on the outcome of Georgia's January 5 runoff elections, which determine which party controls the senate. The reality is more nuanced.
A controversial way that Congress spends money is returning, after being banned almost a decade ago.
Liu Jie/Xinhua via Getty Images
Banned in 2011, pork-barrel spending may return to Congress, where Democrats want to resurrect the practice to make passing budgets easier – and help keep their narrow majority in 2022 elections.
Posting signs like this are often enough to avoid liability.
AP Photo/David Zalubowski
Congress and the White House are trying to wrap up negotiations on a nearly $1 trillion coronavirus bailout, but Senate Republican demands for a liability shield has been a key obstacle.
Joe Biden shows a mask at a press conference on November 16. He is concerned about Donald Trump’s refusal to engage in the power transition process. This, according to him, hinders the fight against the virus.
Roberto Schmidt/AFP
President-elect Joe Biden's cabinet picks show a preference for ability and a desire to reengage with the world.
(R to L) Georgia GOP Sens. David Purdue and Kelly Loeffler at a rally with Sen. Tom Cotton on Nov. 19, 2020 in Perry, Ga. Loeffler and Purdue face runoff elections against Democratic Senate candidates Jon Ossoff and Raphael Warnock on Jan. 5, 2021.
Jessica McGowan/Getty Images
While Trump's nominee to join the Fed favors returning to the gold standard, an economist explains why the US and the rest of the world abandoned it in the first place.
Jahana Hayes (left) and Lauren Underwood were reelected to the House of Representatives.
AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite
Yes, Trump doesn't like to lose. But his obstruction of the presidential election result has another goal: galvanising his base for the Senate runoff elections in Georgia in January.
President-elect Joe Biden speaks to supporters on Nov. 7 in Wilmington, Del.
AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster
If he wins the White House, Joe Biden will likely have to deal with a Republican-controlled Senate and a lot of Americans who believe he is not the legitimate president.
The Senate wing of the U.S. Capitol building.
Matt H. Wade via Wikimedia Commons
Nicholas G. Napolio, USC Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and Sciences et Christian Grose, USC Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and Sciences
With several senators testing positive for the coronavirus, and many older than 65, political scientists look at 1954, when senators' deaths changed control of the chamber.
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell with reporters, July 30, 2020.
Drew Angerer/Getty Images)