Sen. Mitch McConnell is forging ahead with leadership elections on Wednesday as party finger-pointing continues over the GOP’s disappointing performance in the midterms.
McConnell is facing some opposition for the first time in his 15 years as the Senate Republican leader, but expressed confidence he has the votes to remain in the role.
“I think the outcome is pretty clear. I want to repeat again: I have the votes. I will be elected,” McConnell said at a press conference on Tuesday. “The only issue is whether we do it sooner or later.”
Sen. Rick Scott, tasked with getting GOP candidates elected this year as the chair of the National Republican Senatorial Committee, announced that he will challenge McConnell for the position.
In a letter sent to his Republican colleagues, obtained by ABC News, Scott gave a detailed pitch for what his leadership would look like.
“We must start saying what we are for, not just what we are against,” Scott wrote. “I do not believe we can simply continue to say the Democrats are radical, which they are. Republican voters expect and deserve to know our plan to promote and advance conservative values.”
Scott and McConnell have traded barbs for months over contrasting strategies for the 2022 midterms. McConnell at one point tempered expectations that Republicans would retake the chamber, questioning “candidate quality.” McConnell also pushed back heavily on Scott’s 12-point plan for a Republican majority, which proposed raising income taxes and sunsetting entitlement programs.
Asked to respond to Scott’s challenge, McConnell said: “I don’t own this job. Anybody in the conference is certainly entitled to challenge me. I welcome the contest.”
Democrats ultimately retained their majority in the chamber, clinching the 50 seats needed when Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto won reelection in Nevada over the weekend. Republicans are on track to win the House, though their majority will only be a few seats. Now, the party is left questioning who is to blame for the anticipated “red wave” that never quite materialized.
“Like each of you, I am deeply disappointed by the results of the recent election. Despite what the armchair quarterbacks on TV will tell you, there is no one person responsible for our party’s performance across the country,” Scott wrote in his letter to colleagues.
“Unfortunately, we have continued to elect leadership who refuses to do that and elicits attacks on anyone that does,” Scott continued. “That is clearly not working and it’s time for bold change. The voters are demanding it.”
Sen. Josh Hawley, R-Mo., told ABC News earlier he would support Scott’s bid and said a change in party leadership is needed. “If you want to be in the majority party, clearly what we’re doing isn’t working and hasn’t been working for a long time,” Hawley said.
But Sen. Thom Tillis, R-N.C., said Scott didn’t have much of a chance “at all” at becoming the GOP leader.
House Republicans held their leadership elections on Tuesday, meeting behind closed doors for a secret ballot vote. Rep. Kevin McCarthy won the GOP nomination for speaker, beating back a challenge from Rep. Andy Biggs. Rep. Tom Emmer, R-Minn., was chosen to be the House majority whip and Rep. Steve Scalise, R-La., was elected as Republican majority leader.
McConnell and McCarthy faced calls from prominent conservatives to delay the leadership elections until after the Georgia runoff Senate election on Dec. 6.
“The Republican Party needs leaders who will confidently and skillfully present a persuasive coherent vision of who we are, what we stand for, and what we will do,” a group of over 60 prominent conservatives wrote in an open letter on Monday. “Many current elections are still undecided. There should be no rushed leadership elections.”
This report was originally published on ABC News.
