前总统唐纳德·特朗普知道如何影响选举，这一点很明显。在过去的几年里，他一直支持向下投票的提名者，对初选产生了广泛的影响，并在众议院领导人竞选中留下了自己的足迹。
但特朗普已经开始在一场新的共和党竞选中留下自己的印记:接替共和党领袖米奇·麦康奈尔的竞选周三宣布他将于11月辞去领导职务近二十年后。在2024年大选之后，但在新当选的成员宣誓就职之前，将举行闭门参议院共和党会议，成员将提名和选举新领导人。
特朗普尚未对麦康奈尔的离职发表公开评论，但随着麦康奈尔人气的下降，这位前总统对该党的影响显而易见。许多参议院共和党人周四表示，他们认为候选人与特朗普合作的能力，以及在许多情况下与特朗普保持一致的能力，是他们考虑在11月大选中支持谁的一个重要因素。
参议院少数党领袖米奇·麦康奈尔出现在国会大厦一号参议院会议厅外...
亚伦·施瓦茨/努尔福/舒特斯托克
顶级竞争者讨好特朗普
已经，顶级竞争者被称为“三个约翰”的人正试图讨好特朗普，让许多人猜测他们是否足以胜任这份工作。
得克萨斯州共和党参议员约翰·科宁在正式宣布竞选共和党领袖的声明中，吹捧他对特朗普的诚意。
科尔宁说:“作为共和党的党鞭，我帮助特朗普总统在参议院推进他的议程，包括通过历史性的税收改革和重建我们的司法系统——包括两名最高法院法官。
在与记者的交谈中，科宁说他周三与特朗普进行了交谈-就在麦康奈尔宣布辞职计划的同一天-以使他的“意图”为人所知。
南达科他州共和党参议员、现任共和党党鞭约翰·图恩(John Thune)对自己的意图没有那么公开，但一位发言人周四表示，图恩正在“与他的每一位同事直接接触，讨论参议院共和党会议的未来以及他们希望看到的下一任领导人。”
图恩在周末与前总统通话后，周一发表了对特朗普的支持。
参议员约翰·图恩(共和党)在共和党每周政策发布后的新闻发布会上发言...
塞缪尔·科勒姆/盖蒂图片社
“上次他担任总统时，我与他密切合作。你知道，我是参议院财政委员会关于减税和就业法案的主要谈判者之一。我想说，当我在他的政府下担任议员时，我们通过了15名法官，所以是的——我们有成就的记录，为美国人民做了一些事情，”图恩周四说。
怀俄明州共和党参议员约翰·巴拉索也没有就他的意图发表正式声明。但周三他表示，他将“与会议成员交谈，听取他们的意见，并听取他们对会议发展方向的看法。”
巴拉索与特朗普的关系是有据可查的。他是特朗普最直言不讳的“三个约翰”支持者，并在1月份第一个支持他。
预计其他候选人也将在未来几个月内参加竞选。佛罗里达州参议员里克·斯科特(Rick Scott)在2022年底与麦康奈尔竞选领导人，并可能再次竞选。斯科特的一些同事，包括印第安纳州参议员迈克·布朗(Mike Braun)已经表示支持他。
斯科特在权衡潜在出价时仍在考虑特朗普。
“特朗普总统，我肯定他想要一个可以一起工作的人，所以这可能是他会做的。他可能会考虑所有正在考虑跑步的人，以及他是否感到舒适可以一起工作，”斯科特说。
普通共和党人表示特朗普是一个关键因素
离领导人选举还有9个月——那是相当长的一段时间。但随着这一角色的竞争者开始在他们的会议中寻求支持，很明显，对许多人来说，一个关键因素将是候选人能否与特朗普密切合作。
参议员罗杰·马歇尔。他说，他将努力确保参议院领导层与共和党领袖(可能是特朗普)保持一致。
马歇尔说:“我认为，无论我们的下一任参议院多数党领袖是谁，都必须与共和党总统拥有相同的优先事项和目标。“因此，他们拥有相同的优先事项是很重要的。”
阿拉巴马州参议员汤米·特伯维尔。他说，他预计特朗普将“非常关心”谁是最终的新领导人。
特布维尔在谈到特朗普时说:“他应该参与进来。
威斯康星州共和党参议员罗恩·约翰逊(Ron Johnson)要求在3月份召开一次特别会议，让竞选者概述他们对大会未来的愿景。
当被问及特朗普可能对这一愿景产生的影响时，约翰逊说:“这是共和党参议院会议要完成的事情。
约翰逊表示，他认为特朗普现在介入不会有什么成效。但约翰逊说，如果在11月大选前无法达成共识，“特朗普可能会产生一些影响”。
Are the top candidates to replace McConnell MAGA enough?
Former President Donald Trump knows how to influence an election, that much is clear. In the last few years, he has championed down-ballot nominees, wielded extensive influence over primary races and had his fingerprints on the House leadership race.
But Trump is already beginning to leave his MAGA mark on a new sort of Republican race: the race to succeed Republican leader Mitch McConnell, whoannounced Wednesday that he is stepping down from his leadership role in Novemberafter nearly two decades. After the 2024 election, but before newly elected members are sworn in, there will be closed-door Senate Republican Conference meeting in which members will nominate and elect a new leader.
Trump has not yet publicly commented on McConnell's departure, but the former president's sway over the party as McConnell has waned in popularity is clear. Many Senate Republicans said on Thursday that they believe a candidate's ability to work with Trump, and in many cases align with him, is an essential factor in their consideration of who they'll back during the November contest
Top-tier contenders cozy up to Trump
Already,top-tier contenders-- referred to as the "three Johns" -- are trying to cozy up to Trump, leaving many to speculate if they are MAGA enough for the job.
In a statement formally announcing his candidacy for Republican leader, Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, touted his Trump bona fides.
"As the Republican Whip, I helped President Trump advance his agenda through the Senate, including passing historic tax reform and remaking our judiciary -- including two Supreme Court Justices," Cornyn said.
In a gaggle with reporters, Cornyn said he spoke to Trump Wednesday -- the same day McConnell announced his plans to step down -- to make his "intentions" known.
Sen. John Thune, the South Dakota Republican and current GOP whip, has been slightly less overt about his intentions, but a spokesperson said Thursday that Thune is "reaching out to each of his colleagues directly to discuss the future of the Senate Republican Conference and what they would like to see in their next leader."
Thune issued an endorsement of Trump on Monday after speaking to the former president over the weekend.
"I worked closely with him when he was president last time. You know, I was one of the key negotiators on the Senate Finance Committee on the tax cuts and Jobs Act. We put through, I want to say, 15 judges when I was the whip on the floor under his administration, and so yeah -- we've got a record of accomplishment, of getting things done for the American people," Thune said Thursday.
Sen. John Barrasso, R-Wyo., hasn't issued a formal statement on his intentions yet either. But on Wednesday he said he would "talk to members of the conference and hear what they have to say and listen to them in terms of what direction they want to take the conference."
Barrasso's ties to Trump are well-documented. He is the most outspoken Trump supporter of the "three Johns" and was the first to endorse him, which he did in January.
Other candidates are also expected to throw their hat in the ring in the coming months. Sen. Rick Scott, R-Fla., ran against McConnell for leader in late 2022, and may run again. Some of Scott's colleagues, including Sen. Mike Braun of Indiana, have already said they'd back him.
Scott is still considering Trump when weighing a potential bid, too.
"President Trump, I'm sure he wants somebody he can work with, so that's probably what he'll do. He'll probably think about all the people who are considering running and whether he feels comfortable he can work with," Scott said.
Rank-and-file Republicans say Trump is a key factor
It's nine months until a leadership election -- that's quite a runway. But as contenders for the role begin jockeying for support within their conference, it's clear a key factor for many will be how closely the candidate is able to work with Trump.
Sen. Roger Marshall, R-Kan., said he'll be looking to ensure that Senate leadership aligns with the party leader -- presumptively Trump.
"I think it's really important that whoever our next Senate majority leader, shares the same priorities and goals as whoever the Republican president is," Marshall said. "So it's important that they share the same priorities."
Sen. Tommy Tuberville, R-Ala., said he expects Trump would be "very concerned" about who the eventual new leader is.
"He should be involved," Tuberville said of Trump.
Sen. Ron Johnson, R-Wis., has asked for a special conference meeting to be called in March for contenders to outline their visions for the future of the conference.
"This is something for the Republican Senate Conference to accomplish," Johnson said, when asked about the impact Trump might have on that vision.
Johnson said he did not think it would be productive for Trump to weigh in now. But if no consensus is reached before the November election, "Trump might have some influence," Johnson said.
