Mcconnell To Retire From U.s. Senate After Current Term

Sen. Mitch McConnell used his 83rd birthday Thursday to announce that he won't seek reelection next year, calling his four-decade Senate career an "honor of a lifetime."

“Seven times, my fellow Kentuckians have sent me to the Senate," McConnell said on the Senate floor. "Every day in between, I’ve been humbled by the trust they’ve placed in me to do their business here. Representing our commonwealth has been the honor of a lifetime. I will not seek this honor an eighth time."

The announcement marks the end of the career of a crucial and controversial politician who helped reshape the federal courts. First elected in 1984, McConnell will leave behind a Republican Party transformed by President Donald Trump.

McConnell has emerged as one of the few Republicans to challenge Trump. The Kentucky Republican criticized Trump after the Jan. 6, 2021, insurrection and more recently, has voted against three of the president's Cabinet nominees.

McConnell, the longest-serving Senate party leader in U.S. history, has recently faced health scares, including freezing while speaking and several falls. He stepped down as Republican leader last year.

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