Scoop: Tom Cotton locks down the votes for Senate GOP’s #3 job

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Sen. Tom Cotton (R-Ark.) has secured a solid majority of Republican senators’ votes to elect him GOP Conference Chair — the No. 3 leadership position, sources with direct knowledge of the Cotton team’s whip count tell Axios.

Why it matters: Cotton has long served as a bridge between Senate leadership and the more conservative faction of the conference. He also holds sway in President-elect Trump’s orbit.

• Cotton had been a serious contender for top positions in a Trump administration, but he decided to remain in the Senate, as Axios first reported.
• Cotton’s expected win on Wednesday would box out Sen. Joni Ernst (R-Iowa) from leadership entirely. Sen. Shelley Capito (R-W.Va.) is running for the No. 4 position currently held by Ernst.

Zoom in: Cotton has called every senator in the conference, including incoming senators, addressing their ideas and concerns, according to a source familiar with his efforts.

• The GOP conference chair leads and shapes the party’s political messaging, often providing guidance to fellow senators on how to approach hot issues of the day.
• Cotton has told colleagues he will fight for them on key votes as well as win the political debate with American voters on the airwaves, the source said.

What they’re saying: “Kamala thought she had it locked up too. Anyone who assumes the world’s most deliberative body has made up its mind before closing arguments takes their colleagues for granted,” an Ernst spokesperson told Axios in a statement.

• Cotton’s team declined to respond.

Zoom out: The only other competitive leadership race on Wednesday will be over who will succeed GOP Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.).

• Sens. John Thune (S.D.), John Cornyn (Texas) and Rick Scott are all vying to be GOP leader.
• The current conference chair, Sen. John Barrasso (R-Wy.), is running unopposed for the No. 2 position of majority whip.