Sen. McCormick joins other Republicans in calling to delay leadership vote

Sen. Dave McCormick, R-Penn., joined other Republicans Sunday in calling for a delay in the Senate leadership elections currently scheduled for Tuesday, bringing the total to seven. 

McCormick said in a post on X that the Senate needs to step back and review the future of the Republican leadership following the losses the party sustained in the midterms, which resulted in the Democrats taking control of Congress. 

"One of the things I learned in business and the Army is that after a failure, you have to start with honesty, transparency and accountability," McCormick said. 

The Pennsylvania Republican said that the party needs to elect leadership quickly, but Tuesday doesn't give enough time for a "discussion on what went wrong" and how the GOP can fix it. 

McCormick joins other Republicans calling for a delay in the leadership election. 

On Friday, Sen. Ron Johnson, R-Wis., and four of his colleagues signed a letter requesting a meeting of the broader Senate Republican Conference to discuss delaying the vote, Roll Call reported. 

Sens. Mike Lee of Utah, Ted Budd of North Carolina, Rick Scott of Florida, and John Kennedy of Louisiana also signed the letter. 

Shortly before McCormick posted his call for a delay, Sen. Jim Banks, R-Ind., issued a statement on X, saying, "We need to elect Republican leadership in the Senate, but tomorrow is too soon."

Johnson's push for a delay comes after Trump advisor Alex Bruesewitz questioned if Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., should be reelected to lead the caucus. Johnson plans to send the letter to Senate Republican Conference Chairman Tom Cotton of Arkansas on Monday.