Lurking in the Shadows: The Race to be the Next Fed Chair

President Trump’s description of Jerome Powell as a “numbskull” and “loser” suggests that perhaps the President is not fully satisfied with Powell’s performance as Fed Chair and will be looking to make a change sooner rather than later. Though legal barriers may get in the way, this has led to much speculation about who will be named as successor (and when) and if a new Fed Chair will be able to remake the Fed in Trump’s image. Below we walk through the Fed’s internal governance dynamics, implications of nominating a shadow Fed Chair, and also take a look at some of the leading candidates. Much of Fed governance and process is informal, relying on norms and traditions, rather than statute. These norms have been developed over decades and have helped cement the Fed as a credible , trusted , and non-partisan institution that helps to smooth expectations volatility, rather than add to it. Maintaining the current traditions is the best route, but even if an alternative path is taken, there are likely sufficient guardrails to prevent a sustained and significant erosion of Fed credibility.