I will not seek this honor an eighth time. My current term in the Senate will be my last.
Mitch McConnell will not seek an eighth term in the U.S. Senate, making his current Senate term his last.
Occurrences
I will not seek this honor an eighth time. My current term in the Senate will be my last.
Evidence
The Senate floor record states that McConnell said, "I will not seek this honor an eighth time. My current term in the Senate will be my last."
The Biographical Directory lists McConnell's 1984 election, reelections through 2020, and says the 2020 term ends January 3, 2027.
The guide lists 2026 deadlines: primary filing January 9, independent and minor-party general filing April 1, and write-in filing August 24.
The 2026 Primary Election page for U.S. Senator lists 20 filed candidates; Mitch McConnell is not among them.
The Republican primary sample ballot lists the U.S. Senator race candidates; McConnell does not appear.
"I will not seek this honor an eighth time. My current term in the Senate will be my last."
"Mitch McConnell (R-KY)" appears under "Departing Senators" and "Not seeking reelection – 119th Congress."
Reelected in 2020 "for the term ending January 3, 2027."
"Last day for write-in candidates to file declaration of intent: August 24, 2026"
The statewide filings page for U.S. Senator is the official filing registry for the 2026 primary election.
The Kentucky Secretary of State candidate filings page lists 19 U.S. Senate primary candidates and does not include Mitch McConnell among filed candidates.
The May 19, 2026 Kentucky Republican primary sample ballot includes the U.S. Senate race and lists candidates other than McConnell.
The Senate Facts page lists Mitch McConnell (R-KY) among departing senators and labels him as not seeking reelection in the 119th Congress.
Kentucky's official 2026 U.S. Senator candidate filings list still shows the filed candidates and does not include Mitch McConnell.
The Senate Facts page lists Mitch McConnell (R-KY) among departing senators and marks him as not seeking reelection in the 119th Congress.
Kentucky's official 2026 U.S. Senator candidate filings page lists 19 filed candidates and does not include Mitch McConnell.
The Kentucky Secretary of State candidate filings page for U.S. Senator lists 19 candidates and does not include Mitch McConnell.
The Senate Facts page lists Mitch McConnell (R-KY) under 'Not seeking reelection - 119th Congress.'
Mitch McConnell (R-KY) appears under "Not seeking reelection – 119th Congress."
The 2026 Primary Election candidate filings list 19 U.S. Senate candidates and do not include Mitch McConnell.
The Senate Facts page lists Mitch McConnell under "Not seeking reelection - 119th Congress" and again marks him not seeking reelection in the 2026 reelection list.
The Kentucky Secretary of State's 2026 Primary Election candidate filings page lists 19 U.S. Senate candidates and does not include Mitch McConnell.
The Kentucky Secretary of State's 2026 General Election candidate-filings page lists four candidates for U.S. Senator: Andy Barr, Charles Booker, Thomas Michael Murphy as a write-in candidate, and Christopher Campbell; Mitch McConnell is not listed.
The 2026 candidate guide lists the write-in filing deadline as August 24, 2026.
Assessments
McConnell publicly pledged on February 20, 2025 that he would not seek an eighth Senate term, and official Senate and Kentucky filing records through July 6, 2026 consistently show him as not seeking reelection and absent from the 2026 primary/general candidate lists. However, because the Kentucky write-in filing deadline is August 24, 2026 and his current Senate term has not yet ended, the promise is not fully closed out as of the assessment date. It is therefore strongly on track but not yet fully delivered.
McConnell explicitly announced on February 20, 2025 that he would not seek an eighth Senate term, and official Kentucky filings and Senate references through May 2026 show him not running in the normal 2026 reelection process. That is strong evidence he is carrying out the pledge. But as of June 20, 2026, the remaining write-in filing window had not yet closed and his current term had not yet ended, so the claim that this term will definitively be his last is not fully closed out yet. That supports partial rather than full delivery at this time.
McConnell materially advanced and largely carried out this pledge in his current Senate term: on February 20, 2025, he publicly said he would not seek an eighth term, and official Kentucky 2026 candidate filings and the May 19, 2026 primary ballot do not list him as a Senate candidate. Official Senate reference pages also continue to identify him as not seeking reelection. But as of June 14, 2026, the promise is not yet fully final because his current term does not end until January 3, 2027, and Kentucky's 2026 write-in filing deadline of August 24, 2026 had not yet passed. That means the core retirement commitment is strongly supported, but the last remaining route to seeking another term had not completely closed.
McConnell publicly stated on February 20, 2025 that he would not seek an eighth Senate term and that his current term would be his last. Official Senate and Kentucky filing records in 2026 show he did not file for the Senate primary and is listed as not seeking reelection. Although a write-in path existed until a later deadline, the promise as stated has been carried out in his current term.
McConnell publicly announced on February 20, 2025 that he would not seek an eighth Senate term and that his current term would be his last. Kentucky's 2026 candidate filings and sample ballots do not show him as a filed candidate, and official Senate references list him among departing senators not seeking reelection. Although a later write-in deadline still existed at the time of some evidence, the available record supports that he has not sought the eighth term during his current term.
McConnell publicly announced during his current Senate term that he would not seek an eighth term, and official Kentucky filing and ballot records show he did not file for or appear on the 2026 U.S. Senate Republican primary ballot. That is substantial evidence he is carrying out the promise. However, as of May 24, 2026, the current term has not ended and Kentucky's write-in filing deadline of August 24, 2026 has not yet passed, so the final promised outcome is not fully locked in. This supports partial credit now rather than full delivery.
McConnell publicly announced during his current Senate term that he would not seek an eighth term, and official Kentucky 2026 primary filings and sample ballots show he did not file for or appear in the Republican U.S. Senate primary. That substantially advances the promise. However, as of May 19, 2026, the write-in declaration deadline of August 24, 2026 had not yet passed, and his current term does not end until January 3, 2027. Because a remaining ballot-access route still exists, the promise is not fully locked in yet.
McConnell has clearly announced during his current Senate term that he will not seek an eighth term, official Senate references list him as not seeking reelection, and Kentucky primary filings and sample ballots show he did not file for the 2026 U.S. Senate primary. However, as of the assessment date, May 11, 2026, Kentucky's write-in declaration deadline of August 24, 2026 had not yet passed, so the promised outcome was not fully locked in. This warrants partial credit now rather than full delivery until all viable paths to seeking the eighth term have closed or the term ends.
McConnell publicly announced that he would not seek an eighth Senate term, and official Kentucky filings and sample ballots show he did not enter the 2026 U.S. Senate primary. Major-party, independent, and minor-party filing routes had closed by April 27, 2026. However, the write-in deadline had not yet passed, and the claim that his current term will be his last cannot be fully confirmed until remaining ballot access paths close or the term ends. The promise is therefore substantially on track but not yet fully delivered as of the adjudication date.