UPDATE: The Senate confirmed Kash Patel as FBI director on Thursday. Sen. Mitch McConnell voted yes for the appointment.
Senator Mitch McConnell, Kentucky’s longest-serving senator, announced he would not seek reelection in 2026 on Thursday.
The announcement comes shortly after he voted against three of President Donald Trump’s cabinet picks, making him the only Republican to do so in both cases. Another confirmation hearing is occurring Thursday.
Here’s what to know.
Mitch McConnell voted no on Pete Hegseth for Defense Secretary
Last month McConnell voted against Pete Hegseth’s confirmation as secretary of Defense. Other Republicans who voted no were Sens. Lisa Murkowski of Alaska and Susan Collins of Maine.
In a statement, McConnell said that leading the armed forces is “a massive and solemn responsibility.”
“Mr. Hegseth has failed, as yet, to demonstrate that he will pass this test,” he said. “But as he assumes office, the consequences of failure are as high as they have ever been.”
Mitch McConnell voted against confirming Tulsi Gabbard to lead National Intelligence
McConnell was the only Republican to vote in opposition of Tulsi Gabbard’s confirmation as the director of National Intelligence during last week’s confirmation hearing.
“The nation should not have to worry that the intelligence assessments the President receives are tainted by a Director of National Intelligence with a history of alarming lapses in judgment,” McConnell said following the vote.
Gabbard previously served as a Democratic congresswoman for Hawai’i from 2013-21, USA TODAY reported, and left the Democratic Party in 2022 following a bid in the 2020 Democratic presidential primary. She switched her allegiances to President Donald Trump in the 2024 election and will now oversee the 18 agencies within the U.S. Intelligence Community and serve as the top adviser on intelligence matters in Trump’s Cabinet.
President Donald Trump congratulates former Rep. Tulsi Gabbard, D-Hawaii, after she was sworn in as director of national intelligence in the Oval Office of the White House on Feb. 11, 2025.
Mitch McConnell voted against confirming Robert F. Kennedy Jr. as secretary of U.S. Department of Health
Once again McConnell broke rank and was the only Republican to vote in opposition for another one of Trump’s cabinet picks: Robert F. Kennedy Jr. as the secretary of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.
Following the 52-48 vote last week, the Kentucky senator and former Senate Republican leader said that as a survivor of polio during his childhood, he “will not condone the re-litigation of proven cures, and neither will millions of Americans who credit their survival and quality of life to scientific miracles.”
Robert F. Kennedy Jr. speaks in the Oval Office of the White House, on the day he is sworn in as secretary of Health and Human Service in Washington, D.C., U.S., February 13, 2025. REUTERS/Nathan Howard
“Individuals, parents, and families have a right to push for a healthier nation and demand the best possible scientific guidance on preventing and treating illness. But a record of trafficking in dangerous conspiracy theories and eroding trust in public health institutions does not entitle Mr. Kennedy to lead these important efforts,” McConnell said in a news release after the vote.
“Mr. Kennedy failed to prove he is the best possible person to lead America’s largest health agency,” McConnell said. “As he takes office, I sincerely hope Mr. Kennedy will choose not to sow further doubt and division but to restore trust in our public health institutions.”
Kennedy is a longtime critic of vaccines, and the former presidential candidate and longtime environmental lawyer has faced widespread opposition from Democrats and objections from some Republicans, making him one of Trump’s weakest Cabinet nominees, USA TODAY reports. He’ll now oversee the Department of Health and Human Services, with a budget of $1.7 trillion for the 2025 fiscal year.
Previously: Mitch McConnell votes against RFK Jr. during confirmation for Health and Human Services Secretary
Will Mitch McConnell vote to confirm Kash Patel as F.B.I director?
McConnell announced he would not be seeking reelection on Thursday, his 83rd birthday and the day of Kash Patel’s confirmation hearing. Patel is Trump’s pick for F.B.I director.
According to a report from the New York Times, McConnell’s colleagues expect him to vote against confirming Patel on Thursday.
This story has been updated to add new information.
CONTRIBUTING: Cybele Mayes-Osterman and Riley Beggin, USA TODAY, and Jenny Porter Tilley, USA TODAY Network.
This article originally appeared on Louisville Courier Journal: Sen. Mitch McConnell has voted against these Trump cabinet picks
