McConnell Expects ‘Vigorous’ 2024 Presidential Primary

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) speaks during a news conference following a closed-door lunch meeting with Senate Republicans at the U.S. Capitol in Washington on Jan. 24, 2023. Drew Angerer/Getty Images

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) told reporters he expects a “vigorous” Republican primary for the 2024 presidential race.

At the end of the GOP weekly agenda press conference on Feb. 14, McConnell asked to comment on Nikki Haley’s announcement that she would run for president. McConnell said he would support whomever the party selected as its candidate.

“Well, what I think is we’re going to have is a vigorous campaign,” McConnell said. Considering the possible field, McConnell is likely correct.

Haley, the governor of South Carolina from 2010 to 2017, is only the second Republican to announce her candidacy. The other is her old boss, former President Donald Trump, who appointed Haley as U.N. Ambassador in 2017.

President Donald Trump announces that he has accepted the resignation of Nikki Haley as U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations in the Oval Office on Oct. 9, 2018. Mark Wilson/Getty Images

Others considered likely to seek the Republican nomination are Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis; Trump’s former vice president Mike Pence; Mike Pompeo, Trump’s CIA director and U.S. Secretary of State.

Sen. Tim Scott (R-S.C.) is also expected to announce his candidacy.

According to a Reuters poll posted at realclearpolitics.org, Trump is the favorite of 43 percent of registered Republicans. DeSantis is showing 31 percent. Pence scored 7 percent, and Haley trails with 4 percent. The poll was conducted Feb. 6-13, before Haley announced her candidacy.

At this point in the process, the positions each will take concerning the Biden presidency seem clear. Republicans have been hammering at Biden’s perceived weak foreign policy, especially regarding China and the war between Russia and Ukraine. The GOP has highlighted the issues of rising inflation, violent crime, supply chain issues, and the weaponization of government agencies.

And in this field, some have demonstrated a propensity to go all out. They are starting with the former president.

‘Follow Heart, Not Honor’

Trump is well-known for his use of social media and total unwillingness to back down from a fight. During the 2016 campaign, he became famous for biting and sharp-witted Tweets. When Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas)—who may enter this race as well—appeared to be getting too close, Trump labeled him “Lyin’ Ted.”

This primary campaign may begin with a ready-made conflict in the form of a promise Haley made in 2021 that she “would not run if president Trump ran.” The former president’s response was vintage Trump, alluding to Haley’s character.

On his own social media platform, Truth Social, Trump wrote, “Nikki has to follow her heart, not her honor. She should definitely run.”