As Senate Republicans gear up for a leadership vote this Wednesday, President-elect Donald Trump is already making demands of the incoming majority leader, particularly concerning his cabinet. Following a landslide win in the 2024 elections, Trump is set to return to the White House with a GOP-led Senate ready to support his agenda and nominations.

The President-elect has made it abundantly clear that he wants his nominees to be put in place immediately, hinting at the possibility of bypassing the Senate’s role in advising and consenting to his appointments. This has led him to weigh in on the concept of ‘recess appointments.’

Recess appointments are a mechanism that allows the President to temporarily install nominees without undergoing the Senate confirmation process. In a post on Truth Social, Trump argued that without these appointments, there will be delays in getting people confirmed. He underscored the urgency, stating, “We need positions filled IMMEDIATELY!”

The Constitution’s ‘Recess Appointment Clause’ gives the President the power to fill vacancies during the Senate’s recess. This has traditionally been used to expedite appointments during the Senate’s absence, but has also been used for political reasons. However, the use of recess appointments has been controversial and has been challenged by both parties in recent years.

Despite this, all three candidates for the GOP leadership have supported Trump’s demand for recess appointments. The race for the Senate majority leader position sees Whip John Thune, Senator John Cornyn, and Senator Rick Scott as the main contenders.

Regardless of the outcome, these leadership changes come after Minority Leader Mitch McConnell’s decision to step down after 17 years, opening the door for a new generation of leadership in the Senate.

As the race heats up, external influencers such as Tucker Carlson, Robert F. Kennedy Jr., Elon Musk, and Vivek Ramaswamy have thrown their support behind Scott. However, the impact of such endorsements is yet to be seen, as the Senate Republicans will be voting in secret, making them less susceptible to outside pressures.

The final decision could potentially be influenced by an endorsement from Trump himself, given that he will be working with the new leader. However, whether Trump will endorse a specific candidate is still uncertain.

The article was contributed by Scott MacFarlane and written by Kaia Hubbard, a political reporter for CBS News Digital based in Washington, D.C.