Two influential Senate conservatives, Rick Scott of Florida and Josh Hawley of Missouri, declined on Monday to say whether they would support John Thune in his bid to remain Senate Republican leader, as the conference struggles to regroup after losing at least seven seats in the midterm elections.
Scott, who chairs the Senate Steering Committee and signed a letter calling for a postponement of Tuesday's leadership election, argued that Republicans must first agree on a shared agenda before choosing who will lead them.
"The first step is, one, what do want to accomplish? And then anybody, including John Thune, if they want to be [leader,] the first thing they have to say is: Do they want to do that?" Scott told Fox News Digital. "If that's not what they want to accomplish, then why would we elect them? If that's what they want to accomplish, then tell us why they're the best at it."
Scott suggested the timing of the leadership vote should hinge on how quickly the conference can define its goals for the lame-duck session and the next Congress. "How long does that take? I think the first step is how long is it going to take us to agree on what our path should be. If we can get that done quickly, we can have elections after that," he said.
The push to delay the vote is being led by Senate Budget Committee Chairman Ron Johnson of Wisconsin, who has gathered support from Scott, Hawley, Mike Lee of Utah, Ted Budd of North Carolina, and John Kennedy of Louisiana. In a letter to Senate GOP Conference Chairman Tom Cotton, they argued that holding leadership elections without a thorough review of the party's failures would be "political malpractice."
Johnson went further, telling The Washington Examiner that he would walk out of Tuesday's leadership meeting if colleagues pressed for an immediate vote. "If you hold the election, I'll leave the room," he said. "I'm not going to participate in elections for leadership tomorrow."
Hawley, often seen as a rising conservative voice, also signaled discontent with the current leadership team. "I'm not going to pledge my vote to leadership. I'll tell you that," he told reporters, including CNN's Manu Raju.
The discontent comes as the GOP faces a broader reckoning over its electoral strategy and messaging. The House GOP leadership battle has similarly been marked by internal divisions and calls for change. Some conservatives have also raised concerns about the party's direction, with a conservative revolt threatening Thune's reelection. Meanwhile, Democrats are eyeing leadership changes of their own as they prepare to take control of the Senate.
Scott, who has previously challenged Thune's leadership, reiterated that the conference needs a clear plan before selecting a leader. He noted that the delay would allow for a "robust discussion" of what went wrong and how to move forward.
The leadership election is scheduled for Tuesday, but the growing calls for delay suggest the outcome may not be as smooth as Thune's supporters had hoped. Thune, who has served as GOP whip and is the favorite to succeed Mitch McConnell, faces a delicate balancing act as he tries to unify a conference with deep ideological divides.
