Could Rick Scott Replace Mitch McConnell? Senate GOP Leader Race Heats Up

With Republicans winning control of the U.S. Senate in this year’s election, discussions about who will replace outgoing Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, a Kentucky Republican, have come into sharper focus.
The new GOP majority will be tasked with selecting a caucus leader after being sworn in on January 3 since McConnell announced earlier this year that he will step down from his position in the new term.
Florida Senator Rick Scott has renewed his push for the leadership position after Republicans flipped four seats from Democrats in this year’s election, falling short of a potential super majority.
Scott, a Trump-backed candidate who was elected for a second term this week, reiterated his intent and belief that he will be the next Senate majority leader on Wednesday, telling Fox News, “I’m going to win.”
“I’ve been talking to my Republican colleagues, guess what. They want change,” Scott said. “They know that Trump has a mandate, they want to be part of that mandate. They want to be treated as equals.”
A report from Axios released on Friday stated that Republican President-elect Donald Trump had privately dismissed Scott as an option weeks ago, telling allies that the senator’s bid was “not serious.”
A senior Trump campaign official denied the report and dismissed the anonymous sources Axios cited, saying Trump “hasn’t weighed in on the leadership race and anyone who says differently is wrong.”
Some allies close to Trump see Scott as a viable option, which the senator has worked to translate into a public endorsement from Trump.
Wisconsin Senator Ron Johnson and Utah Senator Mike Lee have publicly backed Scott as an option and urged Trump to do the same. During a recent interview with conservative talk radio host Jesse Kelly, Johnson called Scott an “extraordinary individual, highly successful in the business world, highly successful governor of Florida” who “turned that state around” and “set [Florida Governor] Ron DeSantis up for success.”
“Jesse, if you’ve got any influence with President Trump, get Trump to come out publicly to say he wants to work with someone as accomplished as Rick Scott to accomplish his agenda,” Johnson said, insisting that the Republicans “have to deliver” while in the majority.
Dustin Grage, Townhall columnist and self-described “Minnesota GOP Hype Man,” also backed Scott, writing on X, formerly Twitter, on Friday that while he’s “not the biggest fan of Rick Scott,” he believes he is “the best among those running” and “any pragmatic conservative would take him over [Senator John] Thune or [Senator John] Cornyn.”
Scott’s communications director, McKinley Lewis, said in a statement shared with Politico that “as Senate Republican leader, Senator Scott will bring Florida’s winning conservative record to Washington and be a true ally to President Trump to execute his agenda and fundamentally change the direction of this country.”
Scott’s team also posted a number of other endorsements, including from Turning Point USA founder Charlie Kirk who is credited with playing a major role in helping drive out voters for Trump. Other endorsements came from former Secret Service agent turned conservative radio personality Dan Bongino and conservative activist and commentator Laura Loomer, as well as Johnson and RNC Committeewoman Amy Kremer.
Scott’s campaign responded via email to a Newsweek request for comment on Saturday by pointing to its website and posts on X, which have garnered millions of views and tens of thousands of likes and shares.
A post asking for shares “if you’re ready for a conservative Senate Majority Leader who will work to MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN” had over 16,000 reposts as of Saturday afternoon.
Much like the presidential election, which remained close until Election Day, the race to replace McConnell as GOP Senate leader has a few candidates who have all jockeyed hard for the position without any single candidate having a stand-out advantage so far.
Other candidates who have staked a claim to the leadership role include South Dakota Senator John Thune, who currently serves as the minority whip; Texas Senator John Cornyn; and Wyoming Senator John Barrasso. Thune, as whip, is seen by many as the frontrunner, with Barrasso highly rated as the third-ranking Republican in the Senate.
Cornyn formerly served as party whip during Trump’s first administration, helping advance his agenda and often citing his experience in that process to help him learn “what works and what does not” in an effort to “restore our institution to the essential role it serves in our constitutional republic.”
Meanwhile, McConnell told reporters on Wednesday that he credits Republicans’ victory in the Senate to “candidate quality,” adding, “If you’re looking for a simple answer, I think it was a referendum on the current administration, in part. People were just not happy with this administration and the Democratic nominee was a part of it.”
Updated 11/9/24 at 1:52 p.m. ET: This article has been updated with comment from Scott’s campaign as well as additional information.