The Senate GOP's incoming majority will bring some new people to power behind the scenes, Nick and Daniel write.

Let's look at some committee and leadership staffers who might be writing the bills, negotiating nitty-gritty details and managing the Senate floor next year.

Geoff Antell, chief of staff for Senate GOP Whip John Thune

Antell is the current top staffer in Thune's leadership office, and he's got a deep history on the Hill.

• He was trade counsel for House Ways and Means before moving to the office of then-Speaker Paul Ryan and later joining Thune's team.
• If Thune wins the leadership battle, Antell, a Harvard Law graduate, could be a huge voice in setting the direction of the GOP conference.

Drew Brandewie, chief of staff for Sen. John Cornyn

Brandewie is a longtime staffer for Texas' senior senator and could become an even bigger player if Cornyn is the majority leader.

• He served as a press secretary and comms director for Cornyn before taking the chief role in 2022, per LinkedIn.

Laura Atcheson, senior counsel for Cornyn

Atcheson, a graduate of Florida State University's College of Law, has worked in Cornyn's office nearly 10 years, according to LegiStorm.

• Before that, she served as Clean Water Act counsel on the EPW Committee under former Sens. David Vitter and Jim Inhofe.

Adam Tomlinson, Environment and Public Works GOP staff director

Tomlinson is a West Virginia native who's done two lengthy stints for likely incoming EPW Chair Shelley Moore Capito going back to her time in the House.

• He'd been her legislative director for nearly 10 years before becoming Capito's top committee staffer when she took the helm for Republicans in 2021, per LinkedIn.
• A graduate of West Virginia University's College of Law, Tomlinson is a veteran of the IRA reconciliation fight, and he'll be a key player in the next battle to peel back unspent money in EPW's jurisdiction.

Justin Memmott, Energy and Natural Resources GOP staff director

Memmott has worked for Ranking Member John Barrasso since 2007, in the personal office and on three committees.

• A Vanderbilt University Law School alum, Memmott has been Barrasso's energy policy advisor and a senior counsel on EPW before moving with the senator to work on ENR.
• He helped negotiate the Nuclear Energy Innovation and Modernization Act, this year's Russian uranium ban law and the Manchin-Barrasso permitting bill.
• Barrasso's slated to be the No. 2 Republican next year, so Memmott may move up into that office, but he's a person to watch no matter where he lands.

Fitzhugh Elder, Agriculture GOP staff director

Elder joined the panel reporting to Sen. John Boozman in 2021 and oversees the staff working to shape the farm bill.

• Elder has more than two decades of Senate service, including eight years with the Senate agriculture appropriations subcommittee as deputy Republican clerk and Republican clerk.

Samuel Crofts, legislative assistant for Sen. Mike Lee

Crofts handles energy and natural resources issues for Lee, including his current ENR portfolio, according to LinkedIn.

• He could move over to ENR if Lee is the chair next year, but we'll be watching the staff reshuffling on that committee.

As clean energy braces for the return of President-elect Trump, one sector stands out as particularly vulnerable: offshore wind, Katie Fehrenbacher writes in Axios Pro: Climate Deals.

Why it matters: A White House hostile to offshore wind could exacerbate the domestic industry's previous struggles and slow its recent momentum.

Zoom in: Shares in offshore wind firms Ørsted and Vestas cratered yesterday, each dropping about 14% on the news of a Trump victory.

• Trump said this year that he plans to halt offshore wind energy projects "on day one" of a new term.
• Trump also celebrated when Ørsted canceled two wind projects off New Jersey amid climbing costs.
• The comments stand in stark contrast to the Biden administration's investments and its goal for U.S. offshore wind to generate 30 GW of clean energy by 2030.

Catch up quick: The U.S. has only 310 MW of operating offshore wind projects, but there's a pipeline of shovel-ready projects of 15 GW, according to the nonprofit and industry group Oceantic Network.

For the full story, subscribe to Axios Pro: Climate Deals.

Some Senate races are yet to be called, with tight counts going on across swing states, Nick and Daniel write.

Why it matters: Republicans have control, but the margin is a big deal for nominees, legislation and the fate of the IRA.

Since yesterday's update, no more races have been called by the AP in the Senate races we told you to watch.

• As of 2pm ET, incumbent Bob Casey still trails in Pennsylvania and could be headed for an automatic recount. Jacky Rosen has opened up a lead in Nevada.
• Rep. Ruben Gallego is leading in his bid to join the Senate, but it's still too close to call, with 69% of votes reported.

What we're watching: Democratic Senate candidates have outperformed Kamala Harris in crucial states.

• For example, even though he lost, Sen. Jon Tester got over 40,000 more votes than Harris in Montana, as of the current count.

In the House, control has yet to be decided, but Republicans are currently favored.

• Iowa Rep. Mariannette Miller-Meeks has declared victory against Democrat Christina Bohannan but doesn't have the official check mark quite yet.
• Democrats in Alaska, Arizona and California are all trailing in the other races we're watching.