Kotek's decision to move Barker may be an effort to get fresh perspectives atop committees, or it may reflect a new reality: with 38 Democratic votes, Kotek may feel she no longer has to pay as much deference to the moderates in her caucus, of whom Barker is a leader. Williamson, who is widely believed to have ambitions for statewide office, is more progressive than Barker and more likely to push criminal justice reform aggressively as Judiciary chair.