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Mitch McConnell won't seek reelection in 2026, leaving Kentucky's Senate seat open. Daniel Cameron and Andy Barr emerge as contenders, while McConnell's long-standing rift with Donald Trump continues to define his legacy.
UPDATED: Feb 21, 2025 16:53 IST
Republican Senator Mitch McConnell on Thursday announced that he won't contest for reelection in 2026. The Senator from Kentucky is the longest-serving Senate party leader in US history. This will leave a vacant Senate seat for Kentucky for the first time in 16 years for Republican leaders.
He chose his 83rd birthday to formally announce his exit from the Senate after having won the seat seven times.
“Representing our commonwealth has been the honor of a lifetime. I will not seek this honor an eighth time. My current term in the Senate will be my last,” he told AP.
McConnell did not endorse any potential replacement for his role as GOP leader in the Senate for the time being.
Who will replace Mitch McConnell?
Daniel Cameron, a former state Attorney General, launched his bid to take over the Senate seat of the 83-year-old on X. The 39-year-old shared a picture of his family, and wrote that it was time for the state to vote for the next generation. He wrote, “Kentucky, it's time for a new generation of leadership in the U.S. Senate. Let's do this.”
Kentucky, it's time for a new generation of leadership in the U.S. Senate. Let's do this. pic.twitter.com/YRXAm4Busv — Daniel Cameron (@DanielCameronKY) February 20, 2025
Rep. Andy Barr has also expressed his ambitions to contest for the Senate seat. Barr issued a statement addressing this possibility.
On the other hand, Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear, one of the strongest Democrats of the state has cleared himself out of the race. Beshear's spokesperson Eric Hayes posted the update on X.
“To spare my inbox, texts and voicemail today, just putting this here and on the record: He [Andy Beshear] is not running for Senate,” he wrote.
To spare my inbox, texts and voicemail today, just putting this here and on the record: He is not running for Senate. — Eric Hyers (@EricHyers) February 20, 2025
House Oversight Committee chair James Comer's spokesperson Austin Hacker told Axios that Comer "will not be running for Senate in 2026 but is strongly considering a run for Governor in 2027.”
If Andy Barr does contest for the Senate, Kentucky Democrats will put their full force in taking over his House seat. “KY-06 could become a competitive race with a strong Democratic candidate and with Trump's approval numbers starting to sink," House Majority PAC spokesperson C.J. Warnke told Axios.
Mitch McConnell not a Trump loyalist
McConnell might've served as GOP leader in the Senate for over a decade, however, he was never a favorite of Donald Trump. The two were often at odds as the 83-year-old was not fond of Trump's "isolationist populism." Rather, he was a supporter of ex-President Ronald Reagan's muscular foreign policy.
Mitch McConnell even blamed Donald Trump for the January 6 riots in 2021. Though, the two did have moments of truce, particularly when he endorsed Trump for 2024.
He later referred to Trump as a "despicable human being" and a "narcissist" as reported by AP.
Published By:
Rivanshi Rakhrai
Published On:
Feb 21, 2025
