NEW: Top Contender Emerges In Race To Replace McConnell As GOP Leader
A pro-Trump senator is emerging as a leading candidate to replace retiring Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) when the caucus, who will be in the majority come January, selects a new leader after decades of McConnell’s leadership.
McConnell intends to stay on in the Senate, at least through the remainder of his term, though he announced last year that he will be stepping down from leadership. Several pro-McConnell candidates have emerged as replacements, though many of the names put forward will likely be unpopular with the Republican Party’s overwhelmingly pro-Trump base.
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Senator John Cornyn (R-TX) has long been viewed as a potential successor to McConnell, though he will likely be facing a fierce primary challenge when he is up for re-election in 2026. The longtime Senator endorsed the most stringent gun control legislation passed in decades following the Uvalde Elementary School massacre, which was the result of law enforcement failures after officers refused to breach the school for nearly an hour, resulting in an entire classroom being massacred.
Despite this, Cornyn opted to join Democrats and a handful of moderate Republicans in supporting a gun control bill.
He also claimed that the bogus “Russian collusion” investigations into President-elect Trump had merit, supported the impeachment of Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, and supported massive foreign aid packages for Ukraine.
Other candidates include Senators John Thune (R-SD), Joni Ernst (R-IA), and Rick Scott (R-FL), the latter of whom has emerged as the most pro-Trump of the four leading candidates in recent years.
Scott previously mounted a challenge to McConnell’s leadership in 2022, receiving support from Senators Marco Rubio (R-FL), Ted Cruz (R-TX), Mike Lee (R-UT) and a handful of others. McConnell will likely throw his weight behind Thune or Cornyn, though President-elect Trump’s influence could loom even larger given multiple Senate pick-ups on Tuesday.
“I’m gonna run, Larry. I’m gonna win. And here’s why. I’ve been talking to my Republican colleagues. Guess what? They want change. They know that Trump has a mandate. They want to be part of that mandate. They want to be treated as equals. They want to be part of a team. They want to have a working relationship with the House. They know I’ve got a great working relationship with Trump, with Speaker Mike Johnson,” Scott told Fox News on Thursday.
“They know I’m a business guy. Business guys get things done. We create a plan. We work our mission. We measure things. We create teams. That’s exactly what we want in the Senate and that’s why I’ll be the next majority leader and we’re going to get Trump’s agenda accomplished.”
Scott, who previously served as governor of the Sunshine State before launching his Senate bid, cruised to re-election on Tuesday after wildly improving on his 2018 margin of victory.
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