Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) plans to step down from his leadership position in November, he announced Wednesday, a move that would mark the end of his tenure as the longest-serving Senate leader in American history.
McConnell announced his intention to leave his leadership position in a speech on the Senate floor Wednesday, saying it had been a difficult time for his family after the loss of his wife’s younger sister.
“When you lose a loved one, particularly at a young age, there’s a certain introspection that accompanies the grieving process,” McConnell said. “Perhaps it is God’s way of reminding you of your own life’s journey to reprioritize the impact of the world that we will all inevitably leave behind. I turned 82 last week and the end of my contributions are closer than I’d prefer.”
McConnell recounted the beginning of his congressional career in 1984, at age 42, during the Reagan administration
“If you would have told me 40 years later that I would stand before you as the longest serving Senate leader in American history, frankly, I would have thought you’d lost your mind,” he said.