Trump’s top allies are weighing in on the battle to succeed McConnell. Will Trump influence the race?

WASHINGTON – President-elect Donald Trump’s allies are adding their voices − and pressure − to this week’s high-stakes election to pick Republican leader Mitch McConnell’s heir, who will play a major role in the incoming administration’s vision for the country.

Trump allies Tucker Carlson, Vivek Ramaswamy, Elon Musk, Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and others are weighing in on the critical vote for the next Senate Republican leader, serving as a potent reminder that every major decision is ripe for influence in Trump’s Washington.

The only question now is whether it will work.

McConnell – the longest-serving Senate party leader in American history – is stepping down from his leadership post in January. Three senators are running to replace him in an election that will take place behind closed doors Wednesday.

Two senators are considered the main contenders: Sen. John Thune, R-S.D., who is currently second-in-command in the Senate GOP as Republican whip, and Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, who has also served as whip and previously led the Senate GOP’s campaign arm. Both have longstanding relationships with McConnell.

But several of Trump’s most recognized allies, including Musk, are mounting a campaign to get Sen. Rick Scott, R-Fla., elected as McConnell’s successor. Senators who are close to Trump – including Sens. Tommy Tuberville, R-Ala.; Marco Rubio, R-Fla.; and Bill Hagerty, R-Tenn. – have backed Scott, too.

They argue Scott is the only candidate who has been sufficiently loyal to Trump and would be best equipped to represent the president-elect’s interests. Some are poking at a yearslong rivalry between Trump and McConnell that flared up after the Capitol riot on Jan. 6, 2021.

“A vote for Rick Scott is a vote to END the anti-Trump rot of Mitch McConnell in the US Senate,” conservative podcaster Benny Johnson posted on X. “Thune and Cornyn are a continuation of McConnell’s total failure.”

That’s not all. Musk on Sunday simply shared on X, “Rick Scott for Senate Majority Leader!” Carlson accused Cornyn’s positions of being “indistinguishable from Liz Cheney’s,” one of Trump’s most vocal critics. And Kennedy responded to Carlson’s post, sharing, “Without Rick Scott, the entire Trump reform agenda wobbly.”

Thune and Cornyn have been active fundraisers and campaigners for their fellow senators and are popular with their colleagues. Their supporters say they would bring decades of experience to the leadership role and could hit the ground running to enact Trump’s agenda.

Both Republican senators have worked to rebuild their relationships with the president-elect and say they stand ready to pursue his goals, including a recent demand to accelerate confirmation of his Cabinet and judicial nominees.

Still, Trump has not publicly indicated he plans to endorse in the three-way Senate race − which will be conducted by secret ballot. If he did weigh in, a public pressure campaign is a gamble: It could change the direction of the race, or senators might reject Trump’s choice.