Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-KY.) will not seek re-election in 2026, he announced on the Chamber of Commerce floor on Thursday, ending the political career of the longest serving Senate leader. .
“On seven times, my fellow Kentuckians sent me to the Senate,” McConnell said.
“Every day in the meantime I am humbled by the trust they have placed on me to do their business here. It was a once-in-a-lifetime honor to represent our Federation. I am. I will not seek this honor for the eighth time. My current term in the Senate will be my last.”
In the Senate, lawmakers also voted to tee for the final vote on Kash Patel's nomination to lead the FBI.
Elsewhere in Washington, Vice President Vance launched this year's Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) in a speech with a conservative crowd in National Harbor, Maryland.
The annual conference, which has traditionally linked differences in Republican derivation, is increasingly in line with President Trump's Maga Wing.
Other speakers scheduled to appear at the meeting include former Arizona Senate candidate Kari Lake, former White House chief strategist Steve Bannon, and conservative commentator Ben Shapiro.
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