Mitch McConnell, 82, criticized for maintaining power from a wheelchair as Senate is likened to a senior care center

Senator Mitch McConnell has not disclosed whether he intends to run for reelection next year. However, several Republicans are preparing to vie for the position currently held by the longstanding Republican Kentucky lawmaker.

McConnell has stirred controversy within the Republican Party with his repeated votes against Donald Trump’s nominees for various cabinet roles. His actions have led many to brand him as a ‘traitor to America’ and have called for his removal from the Senate.

Last year, the 82-year-old senator made waves when he announced his decision to step down from his GOP leadership role. McConnell had held the position of the top Senate Republican since 2007, establishing himself as the longest-serving Senate party leader in U.S. history.

McConnell was first elected as a senator in 1985 and is currently in his seventh term. He is the longest serving senator in Kentucky’s history, but his six-year term wraps up in 2026.

Having stepped down from leadership, McConnell is the current chair of the Senate Rule Committee and remains a powerful voice in the Senate where he has become more vocal in his criticism of President Trump’s policies.  

While his own intentions remain unclear, McConnell has had a series of health scares in recent years which have raised questions about his ability to serve another term and highlighted the aging Senate body.

Just last week, the octogenarian fell twice in one day, first taking a tumble down some stairs in the Senate and then reportedly again during the GOP Senate luncheon. He was later spotted in a wheelchair later.

In December, McConnell was seen sporting a bandage on his face and a wrist brace while being helped by an aide at the U.S. Capitol after another fall. 

Senator Mitch McConnell wearing a boot and in a wheelchair arriving to vote on February 12 after falling last week on a staircase

He has also raised concerns after freezing in the middle of remarks on two separate occasions that were both captured on camera twice in 2023. 

The first time happened in the middle of remarks at the U.S. Capitol that July. The second time happened just weeks later at a press conference back in Kentucky.

It has lead numerous calls for him to step aside as some critics slam U.S. lawmakers for sticking around well past the average age of retirement. 

Fueling speculation that McConnell is on his way out, the Kentucky senator has bucked the party and voted against a series of Trump nominees in recent weeks.

He first voted against Pete Hegseth as defense secretary along with two of his Republican colleagues who joined every Democrat. He was then the lone Republican to vote against Tulsi Gabbard and Robert Kennedy Jr. 

McConnell also criticized the president warning his trade war will raise prices on Americans.

McConnell has voted ‘no’ on three of Trump’s nominees including Pete Hegseth, Tulsi Gabbard and Robert Kennedy Jr. 

While McConnell has yet to make his future plans known, some Kentucky Republicans have already set their sights on his Senate seat.

Here’s who could be waiting in the wings to replace Senator McConnell: 

Andy Barr

Congressman Andy Barr has represented Kentucky’s 6th Congressional District since 2013 and serves on both the House Financial Services Committee and the House Foreign Affairs Committee. 

The lawmaker and attorney, 51, has been a close supporter for President Trump and has been a strong backer of the Department of Government Efficiency’s efforts to shrink the federal government since Trump returned to office.

Congressman Andy Barr represents Kentucky’s 6th Congressional District

While Barr has not publicly said he would run for the Senate, several reports indicate he is gearing up for a potential bid. 

The Lexington Herald Leader reported he told a strategist directly he would like to run for the Senate. CBS News also reported he told people at a GOP campaign retreat that he plans to run, but he won’t challenge McConnell in the primary should he seek another term.

Daniel Cameron

Daniel Cameron served as the state’s attorney general from 2019 to 2024 and was the first black person elected to a standalone statewide office in the state. 

Cameron, 39, became the Republican nominee for Kentucky governor in 2023, but he lost the election to incumbent Democratic Governor Andy Beshear. 

After his term as attorney general came to an end last year, it was announced Cameron would lead the 1792 Exchange as its chief executive officer. The conservative nonprofit bills itself as an organization that fights to protect nonprofits and small businesses against ‘woke corporations.’

Former Kentucky Attorney General Daniel Cameron

Former Kentucky Attorney General Daniel Cameron

Cameron has not weighed in publicly on his plans for 2026, but he does have a longstanding relationship with McConnell having first met him as a college student and later serving a his legal counsel. 

While he has not made his future plans known, the former Kentucky official has taken to social media where he has pushed for the confirmation of Trump nominees and praised the president’s actions  at the start of his first term.

James Comer 

Congressman James Comer’s name has also been floated as a potential Senate candidate though he could have his sights set on the governor’s office as he recently said in a local TV interview that he is ‘very seriously considering’ a gubernatorial bid.

Comer, 52, has served in Congress representing Kentucky’s 1st Congressional District since 2016 and currently serves as the chairman of the powerful House Committee on Oversight and Accountability.

Congressman James Comer represents Kentucky’s 1st Congressional District

As chairman of the committee, Comer made a name for himself investigating President Biden and his family during the last administration. He recently called for the prosecution of the former president’s brother.

His committee is expected to pay a key role in the president’s effort to root out waste and abuse with the president’s Department of Government Efficiency moving forward. 

Comer previously served in the Kentucky House of Representatives for six terms, but he has also backed term limits in Washington, so it’s not clear how much longer he would be interested in remaining in the nation’s capitol.

Nate Morris

Nate Morris is a Kentucky businessman and current CEO of Morris Industries. While he has never held elected office, he is a major GOP donor and his name has come up as a potential outsider Senate candidate.

Morris addressed the speculation head-on in a video he posted on X on February 11 where he said he hadn’t made a decision yet but was ‘seriously looking at it.’

As a pro-MAGA businessman, Morris has been posting about his support for the president’s agenda and nominees. He recently slammed McConnell online for voting against Hegseth, Gabbard and Kennedy, and accusing him of trying to ‘sabotage’ Trump.

Nate Morris is a Kentucky businessman and GOP donor who said he is considering a Senate bid

‘I think President Trump needs less of these weak, career politicians running for office and more outside businessmen who are going to fight for his America First agenda,’ he said in his video. 

Morris also slammed the prospect of waiting to see if McConnell retires. He said if someone is ‘asking for permission’ from the former Senate leader to run in Kentucky, a person ‘shouldn’t be running in the first place’ and if he runs, it won’t be because McConnell gave him permission. 

In a local op-ed on Friday, Morris called for McConnell to retire.