Bloomberg News, citing unnamed sources, reported Thursday that current Federal Reserve Governor Chris Waller is now the favorite to replace current Fed chair Jerome Powell, with President Donald Trump possibly making an announcement on his choice by the end of the summer.
Powell, who has been subjected to withering personal attacks by Trump and other members of the administration over his choice not to cut interest rates this year, is serving a term that expires in May of 2026. Trump has gone back and forth on threats to try and remove Powell before that date.
Separately, the Wall Street Journal reported in June that Trump had been considering making an early announcement of a new Fed chair in order to try and influence markets or policy without firing Powell.
According to Bloomberg, Waller—a Trump nominee who has served on the Fed since 2020, and last month was one of two Fed members voting to lower rates—has not yet met with Trump personally. He would still need to be confirmed by the Senate, if he was nominated to be chair.
Throughout this year, Waller has consistently downplayed the effects of Trump’s trade policy on inflation, calling the effect of tariffs “transitory” in regards to inflation. However, he also previously advocated for a gradual path to lowering rates.
Back in 2022, Waller also spoke on the issues with affordability in real estate markets, predicting that “housing will likely become an ever-larger share of household budgets,” and pointed to supply/demand and demographic issues as a primary long-term driver of then-nascent affordability issues, rather than mortgage rates.
Before being appointed Fed governor, Waller served as executive vice president and director of research at the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis for over a decade. Before that, he taught economics at Notre Dame University and the University of Kentucky.
No final decision has been made on the next Fed chair, Bloomberg reported, with former Fed member Kevin Warsh still a contender.
