if the president of the senate is absent who takes his place
President of the Senate While vice presidents used to regularly preside over the Senate, modern vice presidents have done so only rarely, usually only when swearing in new senators, during joint sessions, announcing the result of a vote on a significant bill or confirmation, or when casting a tie-breaking vote. The Senate chooses a president pro tempore to preside in the vice president's absence. Modern presidents pro tempore, too, rarely preside over the Senate. In practice, the junior senators of the majority party typically preside in order to learn Senate procedure.