Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) is signaling more sharply than ever that Republicans’ performance in the midterm elections may not be as strong as the party had hoped, dampening GOP hopes for a Senate takeover.
During a stop in Kentucky on Thursday, McConnell conceded that the House has a better chance of flipping red than the Senate — a statement that, while in line with election forecasts, shows just how concerned Republicans are becoming about races in the upper chamber less than three months before the midterm elections.
“I think there’s probably a greater likelihood the House flips than the Senate,” McConnell told reporters when asked about his midterm expectations, according to NBC News.
“Senate races are just different — they’re statewide, candidate quality has a lot to do with the outcome,” he added.
McConnell’s remarks were a clear reference to candidates endorsed by former President Trump in Pennsylvania, Ohio, Arizona and Georgia who are trailing their Democratic opponents in at least some recent polls.
On Thursday, the nonpartisan Cook Political Report changed its rating for the Pennsylvania Senate race from “toss up” to “lean Democrat,” signaling headwinds for Republican Mehmet Oz in his race against Lt. Gov. John Fetterman (D).
The shift came amid the crudité controversy in the Keystone State. Oz came under fire after Fetterman’s campaign recirculated a video the TV doctor posted in April showcasing him grocery shopping for crudité in an effort to show the effects of inflation.
The Democratic campaign seized on the video, with the candidate writing on Twitter “In PA we call this a… veggie tray,” the most recent move in his attempt to paint Oz as a carpetbagger from New Jersey.
Fetterman’s team said it raised more than $500,000 in...