Kevin Warsh has been nominated to replace Jerome Powell as chair of the Federal Reserve, but he will only officially replace Powell if the Senate confirms his nomination and Powell’s term ends as scheduled in May 2026.

Quick Scoop: What’s Happening

  • President Donald Trump has announced Kevin Warsh as his pick to succeed Jerome Powell as Fed chair when Powell’s term expires in May 2026.
  • Warsh is a former Federal Reserve governor and currently a fellow at the conservative Hoover Institution and a lecturer at Stanford Graduate School of Business.
  • The nomination is not final until the Senate holds hearings and votes to confirm him.

Until that confirmation vote happens, the precise answer to “who will replace Jerome Powell” is: Kevin Warsh is the named nominee, but not yet the confirmed successor.

Why Kevin Warsh?

  • Warsh served on the Fed Board of Governors from 2006 to 2011 and was then the youngest governor in the institution’s history.
  • He has a reputation as more of an inflation “hawk,” which means he is seen as more willing to keep interest rates higher to fight inflation.
  • He has been close to Republican policy circles and is now aligned with more deregulatory views on bank oversight.

An illustration: if Powell has been seen as trying to balance inflation with job growth, Warsh is expected to tilt somewhat harder toward controlling inflation and loosening certain bank regulations.

How We Got Here (Recent Timeline)

  • Throughout 2025, Trump’s team, led by Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, was openly preparing to replace Powell once his term ran out in 2026.
  • Shortlisted finalists reportedly included: Christopher Waller, Michelle Bowman, Kevin Hassett, Rick Rieder, and Kevin Warsh.
  • On January 30, 2026, Trump publicly said he is nominating Warsh as the next Fed chair, closing months of speculation.

From a political angle, this nomination follows a period in which Trump repeatedly criticized Powell for not cutting interest rates quickly enough.

Market and Political Reaction

  • Initial market reaction was cautious; stock futures dipped slightly and then recovered after the nomination news became clearer.
  • Republican Senator Tim Scott, who chairs the Senate banking committee, praised Warsh’s knowledge of markets and policy and signaled openness to the nomination.
  • Democratic Senator Elizabeth Warren sharply criticized the choice, arguing Warsh favored Wall Street over workers after the 2008 crisis.

So public debate is already forming around whether Warsh will prioritize financial markets or broader employment and wage concerns.

“Who Will Replace Jerome Powell?” – Bottom Line

If you are asking in a news/SEO sense “who will replace Jerome Powell”:

  • The latest news: Kevin Warsh is the official nominee to replace Jerome Powell as Fed chair when Powell’s term ends in May 2026.
  • Status right now: Nominee , not yet sworn in; he must clear Senate confirmation first.
  • Trend context: This caps a very public, politically charged search process in 2025–26, with strong commentary in financial media and online forums about Trump wanting a more loyal and rate-cut–friendly Fed chief.

Information gathered from public forums or data available on the internet and portrayed here.