After a decades-long career in the Senate, marred by a recent bout of health scares on Capitol Hill, former Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell announced today he is resigning from his position.
McConnell will not run for re-election in 2026, ending his career in politics at the end of his term.
McConnell has served in the Senate for decades, including as Senate majority leader under President Donald Trump’s first administration. McConnell is the longest-serving Senate party leader in U.S. history, and he announced his retirement on his 83rd birthday.
“Seven times, my fellow Kentuckians have sent me to the Senate,” McConnell said in prepared remarks to the Senate floor.
“Every day in between I’ve been humbled by the trust they’ve placed in me to do their business here. 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.”
“One of life’s most underappreciated talents is to know when it’s time to move on to life’s next chapter,” he said in floor remarks.
“So I stand before you today… to say that this will be my last term as Republican leader of the Senate.”
First elected in 1984, McConnell said he plans to serve out the rest of his term ending in January 2027.
McConnell’s announcement comes nearly a year after he ceded his role as Republican leader in the Senate. He was replaced by Sen. John Thune, R-SD.
McConnell’s surprise announcement comes after a series of serious health scares.
The longtime Republican has froze up during statements to the public on multiple occasions, with his office never providing an explanation for the episodes.
Most recently, McConnell fell while exiting the Senate chamber earlier this month. He also fell during a GOP lunch in December, requiring the use of a wheelchair.
McConnell’s pending departure also comes at a time of a contentious relationship with President Donald Trump, addressing their rocky relationship in a recent CBS “60 Minutes” interview.
McConnell denied he had “screaming matches” with Trump, and instead described their fights as “candid conversations.”
“We had a candid relationship,” McConnell said with a chuckle when asked about the reported screaming matches during Trump’s first term.
When questioned about biographical revelations that he called Trump “nasty” and a “sleazeball,” McConnell responded: “Those were private comments.”
“But they’re in your biography,” “60 Minutes” host Leslie Stahl interjected.
“Yeah,” McConnell admitted.