Mitch McConnell to Spend Remaining Years in Senate Attending to ‘Unfinished Business’

After seven terms representing Kentucky in the U.S. Senate, former Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell announced on Thursday that he will not run for reelection in 2026, marking an end to one of the most consequential political careers in modern political history and setting the stage for a competitive GOP primary to fill his seat.

He plans to serve the rest of his current term, which ends in January 2027. “The Senate is still equipped for work of great consequence,” he said. “And to the disappointment of my critics, I’m still here on the job.”

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Audrey Fahlberg

Audrey Fahlberg was a politics reporter for National Review.

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Mitch McConnell

After seven terms representing Kentucky in the U.S. Senate, former Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell announced on Thursday that he will not run for reelection in 2026, marking an end to one of the most consequential political careers in modern political history and setting the stage for a competitive GOP primary to fill his seat.

He plans to serve the rest of his current term, which ends in January 2027. “The Senate is still equipped for work of great consequence,” he said. “And to the disappointment of my critics, I’m still here on the job.”