Mitch McConnell, the longest-serving party leader in Senate history, will not seek reelection next year, the Kentucky Republican announced on the chamber floor Thursday.
“I figured my birthday would be as good a day as any to share with our colleagues a decision I made last year,” McConnell said on the day he turned 83. “Representing our commonwealth has been the honor of a lifetime. I will not seek this honor an eighth time.”
McConnell, who was first elected to the Senate in 1984, announced his plans to step down from Republican leadership nearly a year ago in the aftermath of health struggles.
