‘The majority want something different': Mitch McConnell casts a long shadow over the battle to be his successor in Kentucky

Boston Globe

7 hours ago

'The biggest thing is, I'm glad Mitch is leaving,' Leslie Flint, a retired nurse, said at last week's meeting of Bullitt County GOP activists in Shepherdsville, a Louisville suburb.
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It's a poetic irony, then, playing out in Kentucky. McConnell might have shaped his state more than any contemporary politician, but his successor may win the seat either by creating distance
from the outgoing legend or by outright running against him.
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Two of the leading candidates find themselves in the former category. Daniel Cameron, the former state attorney general who
Six-term US
Representative Andy Barr, of Lexington, interned for McConnell, whom he has called a mentor, and has been his frequent ally in Washington.
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Both have avoided mentioning their histories with McConnell so far, instead stressing the need for new leadership. By contrast, a third candidate, Lexington businessman Nate Morris, is framing his run for Senate as a rebuke of McConnell's long reign.
Unsurprisingly, all are embracing Trump tightly as another way of demonstrating daylight from McConnell.
It's already gotten nasty.
At the storied Fancy Farm political picnic this month, Morris, a waste management businessman, was booed by a crowd of McConnell-sympathetic party insiders for saying he would 'trash Mitch McConnell's legacy.' Courting their disapproval further, Morris chided the crowd for defending someone 'just as mentally compromised' as former President Joe Biden. Elsewhere, he's attacked his rivals as 'puppets' or 'McConnell's boys.'
A cardboard cutout of Senator Mitch McConnell was placed hear a trash can at the tent of campaign workers for Senate candidate Nate Morris at the annual Fancy Farm picnic.
Mark Humphrey/Associated Press
But even Morris, like virtually every aspiring political figure in Kentucky, interned for McConnell in college; the senator later called him 'the kind of kid you remember because he seems to be so sincere and so dedicated to the cause.' Morris has in the past donated thousands of dollars to McConnell's campaign as well as the Kentucky state GOP. (He has
McConnell's enduring power over Kentucky politics is leaving some in the conservative grass-roots, which is eager for dramatic change, doubtful that any leading candidate can truly represent a clean break.
So the question many Republicans are asking, said Chris Henning, chairman of the Bullitt County GOP, is, 'If we vote for you, are we getting the same thing we already had?'
'The majority want something different from Mitch McConnell,' he said. 'The problem is, we don't necessarily have options different from Mitch McConnell who have any money behind them.' (A fourth candidate, helicopter pilot Michael Faris, has impressed some in the grass roots but is eschewing large donations.)
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It all amounts to a remarkable final chapter in McConnell's long career — and one that points to an uncertain future for a state he is near-universally credited with transforming over his decades in office from a Democratic stronghold to a Republican bastion. With Democratic Governor Andy Beshear seen as unlikely to run, the winner of the GOP primary will be the strong favorite for the general election.
McConnell's record of electoral success belies the fact that he has not consistently enjoyed broadly high approval ratings in Kentucky, said D. Stephen Voss, a political science professor at the University of Kentucky. Despite McConnell's national reputation as an arch conservative, some Republicans harbored disagreements with him long before his high-profile clashes
with Trump.
Former Kentucky attorney general Daniel Cameron campaigned at the annual Fancy Farm picnic in Fancy Farm, Ky.
Mark Humphrey/Associated Press
Ahead of next May's primary, top candidates have competed to hug Trump most tightly. Barr and Cameron have adorned their campaign material with Trump mentions and photo-ops; Morris has run TV ads that proudly proclaim his support for one of Trump's most unpopular policies —his tariff agenda.
Trump is unlikely to make an endorsement in the primary, given the effusive support for him among the candidates. But Morris is a personal friend of Vice President JD Vance, with whom he shares Kentucky roots and a similar biography. Charlie Kirk, the prominent MAGA influencer, was the marquee speaker for Morris's campaign launch this year in Shepherdsville. (Representative Elise Stefanik of New York, a close ally of Trump, has backed Barr, as have other GOP lawmakers.)
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Morris's rivals have disputed the notion that McConnell is a defining factor in the race.
In a statement, Barr's campaign said that McConnell 'isn't on the ballot,' unlike Morris — who it alleged was a 'champion' of diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives as a CEO — or Cameron, who it hit for losing the 2023 governor's race despite Trump's backing.
'Kentuckians see what happens when President Trump and Andy Barr team up together: historic tax cuts, a secure border, and an America First Agenda revitalizing our country and Commonwealth,' the campaign said.
Cameron's campaign, meanwhile, said 'Kentuckians see him as the candidate most aligned with President Trump's vision and values.' They also argued that Morris's criticisms of McConnell are 'completely fake' given his connections to the senator and needled his 'authenticity and likability problem' after he got 'booed off the stage in Kentucky.'
Morris, however, said he's hearing across Kentucky that 'voters are sick of career politicians and are ready for fresh, America First leadership to help deliver President Trump's agenda.'
'The last thing Kentucky needs is a senator who is a controlled puppet of the man who did more than anyone else to try to destroy President Trump following January 6th,' added Morris, who vowed to 'break up the McConnell establishment.'
Kentucky Republican Andy Barr spoke at the Fancy Farm picnic.
Mark Humphrey/Associated Press
Cameron and Barr have tried to signal they will break from McConnell. Barr launched his campaign saying, 'It's time for Kentucky to have a US senator who supports President Trump.' And on Tuesday, a super PAC aligned with Barr sent out a mass text accusing Morris of donating to 'anti-Trump RINOs' — 'Republicans in name only' — like McConnell.
Cameron, meanwhile, has
criticized his former boss for voting this year against several of Trump's Cabinet picks, saying, 'You should expect a senator from Kentucky to vote for those nominees to advance the 'America first' agenda.'
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McConnell, 83, a
legendary political tactician, couldn't resist criticizing Morris this month. 'Surely this isn't true, but I've heard that one of the candidates running for my office wants to be different,' McConnell told a western Kentucky crowd, adding, 'I'm wondering how you'd want to be different from the longest-serving Senate leader in American history.'
Though he did not call him out by name, the remarks could bolster Morris's standing among McConnell critics.
But Morris's attacks on McConnell might backfire, said Maricle, a former state lawmaker and statewide candidate.
'If you're a Republican politician, and you hope to mount a serious statewide campaign effort,' added Voss, 'it's not clear you can afford to alienate all the people who feel loyalty to Mitch McConnell and his organization.'
Cameron has occasionally tapped into the sentiment. 'He can't talk about his actual record. So he has to choose to pick on an 83-year-old,' Cameron said of Morris recently.
Early polls show Cameron, the best-known candidate, with a clear lead. Barr, however, has raised the most money, having recruited some longtime major donors to McConnell. Morris has personal wealth and the clearest MAGA lane, but still has work to do to build his image despite an early $2 million advertising blitz.
Back at the Bullitt GOP meeting, few attendees had made a decision. But long shot hopeful Nicholas Shelley, speaking to the crowd, underscored the resonance of an anti-McConnell appeal.
After Shelley
criticized Trump, potentially puzzling some in the crowd, nods and murmurs of approval went up when he targeted
McConnell — and the candidates distancing themselves from him.
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'They can ride his coattails as much as they want along the way,' he said of his rivals, 'until it becomes bad news to be associated with him.'
Sam Brodey can be reached at