Florida voters could have say in race for Senate Republican leadership

ORLANDO, Fla. - You Decide 2024.

Last week's big story on Capitol Hill was the upcoming change in Senate Republican leadership.

Sen. Mitch McConnell, R-Kentucky, 82, said he’s done as leader in November. McConnell will end his run as the longest-serving Senate leader in U.S. history.

So, who will lead Senate Republicans next? As of now, there has not been a formal decision, but Florida voters could have a say.

Sen. Rick Scott, R-Florida, challenged McConnell for the lead post in 2022. Scott lost his bid by a 37-10 vote. 

With McConnell now set to step aside, Scott seems to be on the short list of possible replacements. Some of the other possibilities include senators who have already served or are serving now in leadership positions, like Sen. John Barrasso, R-Wyoming; Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas; Sen. John Thune, R-South Dakota. 

Cornyn is the only one to announce his bid for leader of the Republican conference officially.

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So this week, FOX 35's Manny Martinez asked Scott in a one-on-one interview, "Are you going to throw your hat in the ring here for Senate Republican Leadership?"

"I’ve been up here for five years and almost from the time I got up here, I thought we needed a change in direction of the Senate," Scott said. "We need to go back to what the Constitution says, that we each represent our individual states without the pressure to represent whatever the Republican leader believes. I ran for that purpose. I think the process we should be doing now as a Republican conference is sit down to say, ‘Where do we want to go?’ And then it’s pretty easy to pick a leader."

"That wasn’t exactly a yes or a no answer, so leaving the door open, aren’t you?," Manny asked.

"Well, Manny, I think the logical way of doing this is to go through the logical process, and we'll see where the Republican conference is, and that’ll lead us to the right person to lead the conference," Scott said.

Scott released a statement the day McConnell announced his intention to step down. It did not mention whether Scott would run for the post, but Aubrey Jewett, a University of Central Florida political science professor, said that was intentional.

"I would be surprised if Rick Scott didn’t throw his hat in the ring," Jewett said.

Jewett said a possible challenge to another Rick Scott leadership bid is the fact Scott is up for re-election this fall.

"Although Florida looks like it’s gone more Republican in the last year or two with voter registration and some of the election results, the fact is that his race is expected to be actually pretty close," Jewett said.

Florida Democrats didn’t wait for any announcements. They are already campaigning against a potential Scott-led Senate GOP.

Debbie Mucarsel-Powell, a one-term congresswoman from South Florida, is Scott’s top Democratic challenger.

"He tried to challenge Mitch McConnell once," Mucarsel-Powell said. "He’ll do it again. He’s been one of the loudest critics against Mitch McConnell, and he was very quick to make that release insinuating that he would consider running, and what does that mean? That the steaks of this race have gotten even more serious."

For now, both Scott and Mucarsel-Powell said they are focusing on the campaign trail.

"I tell people exactly what I’m going to do so people are not surprised, and then I’m very clear when I campaign," Scott said. "If you want to vote for me, this is what you’re going to get. If you want something different, then this is who you can vote for."

"I hope to meet as many Floridians as I possibly can," Mucarsel-Powell said. "My commitment is to earn their support, their vote and for us to work together to make this a better place for our children."

Both candidates are expected to clear their primary opponents.

Florida Democrats see Rick Scott’s seat as one they can pick up, but Scott has yet to lose a statewide election.