Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) is the Senate minority leader, losing the position of majority leader after the 2020 congressional elections.
The senator was asked by CNN’s Manu Raju if he would run for the leader position again in the next Congress.
“I think I’ll not answer that at the moment,” McConnell responded with a chuckle, not revealing his plans.
Sen. John Thune (R-S.D.), who is running for reelection in 2022, told Politico he supports McConnell running for the leader position.
“Leader McConnell has my full support and confidence,” Thune said in February. “No one understands the Senate better than he does.”
Asked if he would run for leader again in the next Congress, McConnell kept his cards close to his vest.
— Manu Raju (@mkraju) March 15, 2021
“I think I’ll not answer that at the moment.” https://t.co/lFiuT1BiWO
McConnell also spoke with CNN about the 2022 congressional elections. There will be 20 Republican seats to defend in the Senate, compared to Democrats defending 14 seats.
“What I’m looking for is somebody who can win in November,” the Kentucky senator told CNN. “I don’t care who they like or don’t like. Can they win in November? So it’s not an ideological thing. It’s not a ‘who do you think is going to be the nominee in ’24’ thing. It’s can you win in November?”
Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) shared that former President Donald Trump plans to endorse many candidates in the 2022 congressional elections as Republicans seek to take back control of the Senate, according to CNN.
“I think you’re going to see him endorse more and more Republicans up for reelection,” Graham said. “There are some he won’t go there, but most of them he’s going to be for, I hope.”
McConnell also weighed in on the retirements of multiple Republican senators, telling CNN, “We’re losing some real talent. We’ll be trying to get the majority back with more new faces than I had hoped.”
“But I think we’ve got a good shot,” he added. “I think this administration has turned out to be extremely left, which is a godsend for us in terms of checking off the ’22 environment.”
McConnell recently found himself coming under fire from Trump, who called him “the most unpopular politician in the country” and “a dour, sullen, and unsmiling political hack.”