WASHINGTON -- Sen. Mitch McConnell was reelected as Republican leader Wednesday, quashing a challenge from Sen. Rick Scott of Florida, the Senate GOP campaign chief who criticized McConnell after a disappointing performance in the midterm elections that kept Senate control with Democrats.
McConnell, of Kentucky, easily swatted back the challenge from Scott in the first-ever attempt to oust him after many years as GOP leader. The vote was 37-10, senators said, with one other senator voting present. McConnell is poised to become the Senate's longest-serving leader when the new Congress convenes next year.
"I'm not going anywhere," McConnell said after the nearly four-hour closed-door meeting. He said he was "pretty proud" of the outcome but acknowledged the work ahead. "I think everybody in our conference agrees we want to give it our best shot."
At a GOP senators lunch on Tuesday, Scott and McConnell had traded what colleagues said were "candid" and "lively" barbs. The 10 Republican senators joining in Wednesday's revolt against McConnell and voting for Scott included some of the most conservative figures and those aligned with former President Donald Trump.
"Why do I think he won?" said Sen. Josh Hawley, R-Mo., among McConnell's detractors. "Because the conference didn't want to change course."
The unrest in the Senate GOP is similar to the uproar among House Republicans in the aftermath of the midterm elections that left the party split over Trump's hold on the party. House GOP Leader Kevin McCarthy won the nomination from colleagues to run for House speaker, but he faces stiff opposition from a core group of right-flank Republicans unconvinced of his leadership.
Scott said in a statement that while the "results of today's elections weren't what we hoped for, this is far from the end of our fight to Make Washington Work."
Retreating to the Capitol's Old Senate Chamber for the private vote, the senators first considered, then rejected, a motion by a Scott ally, Republican Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas, to delay the leadership votes until after the Dec. 6 runoff election in Georgia between Republican Herschel Walker and incumbent Democratic Sen. Raphael Warnock that will determine the final makeup of the Senate.
Cruz said it was a "cordial discussion, but a serious discussion" about how Republicans in the minority can work effectively.
In all, 48 GOP new and returning senators voted. Retiring Sen. Ben Sasse of Nebraska missed the vote to be home after his office said his wife was recovering from a nonthreatening seizure.
Senators also elected the other GOP leadership posts. McConnell's top-posts ranks remained stable, with Sen. John Thune, R-S.D., as GOP whip, and Sen. John Barrasso, R-Wyo., in the No. 3 spot as chairman of the GOP conference. Montana Republican Sen. Steve Daines was elected to take over the campaign operation from Scott.
The challenge by Scott, who was urged by Trump to confront McConnell, escalated a long-simmering feud between Scott, who led the Senate Republican's campaign arm this year, and McConnell over the party's approach to try to reclaim the Senate majority.
Restive conservatives in the chamber have lashed out at McConnell's handling of the election, as well as his iron grip over the Senate Republican caucus.
Trump has been pushing for the party to dump McConnell ever since the Senate leader gave a scathing speech blaming then-President Trump for the Jan. 6 insurrection at the U.S. Capitol.
McConnell has forcefully pushed back, blaming the Republicans' problems on what he has called "candidate quality" after many of his preferred candidates were replaced by Trump-backed Republicans on the ballot.
McConnell said Republicans put up the kinds of candidates that "frightened" independent and moderate voters.
Those voters held the view that "We were not dealing with issues in a responsible way, and we were spending too much time on negativity and attacks and chaos," McConnell said earlier this week. "They were frightened."
“I’m not going anywhere,” Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell said Wednesday after quashing a challenge from Sen. Rick Scott and winning reelection to his post overwhelmingly. (The New York Times/Al Drago)