Mitch McConnell's Heir Apparent

John Thune sat still on the Senate floor Wednesday, hands gently folded in his lap, and stared stoically at his boss, Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, as the Republican from Kentucky announced he would step down from his leadership role in November after the longest run of any party leader in Senate history.

“One of life’s most underappreciated talents is to know when it’s time to move on to life’s next chapter,” said McConnell, who turned 82 last week. As McConnell spoke, one of Thune’s political rivals fidgeted in the chair behind the Senate minority whip. John Cornyn, a Texas Republican and former whip himself, also kept his hands folded in his lap, his knuckles white as he twiddled his thumbs and shuffled in his seat.

Thune and Cornyn are two of the so-called Three Johns—the third being John Barrasso, a Wyoming senator and current GOP conference chair—likely jockeying to replace McConnell as Republican leader, a position that the Kentucky lawmaker has held for a record 17 years. On Thursday, Cornyn announced his bid for GOP leader. Barrasso, meanwhile, skipped votes on Capitol Hill to campaign with far-right Senate candidate Kari Lake in Arizona. Thune, elected to his fourth term in the Senate in 2022, told Vanity Fair last August that he’d be interested in the GOP leader job “when and if” the time came.

After McConnell’s speech, I followed up with Thune to ask if he would announce his candidacy for GOP leader. “Hold that thought,” he replied. Unlike McConnell, all three Johns have endorsed Donald Trump for president, with Thune’s endorsement coming just days before McConnell announced that this would be his last term as leader.

On Thursday, Thune tended to his duties as McConnell’s whip, a key congressional role responsible for providing party leaders with vote counts of members who support or oppose a piece of legislation being brought to the floor. “He’s a member-centric whip, always listening,” said Senator Shelley Moore Capito, a West Virginia Republican. “I can’t say anything bad about him,” she added, a sentiment shared by dozens of his Senate colleagues. But when I asked if Thune could replace McConnell as party leader, Capito wouldn’t commit, indicating that the Senate GOP conference needed time to let the process play out: “I mean, he’s been a leader.”

Vanity Fair asked 19 Republican senators about Thune. None would commit to supporting him outright, though some conceded that the South Dakota Republican is McConnell’s heir apparent to lead the Senate GOP. As McConnell’s top deputy, Thune has made a uniquely positive impression on senators from both sides of the political aisle. Even in this historically partisan Congress, Democrats say Thune has distinguished himself as someone who’s easy to work with. “He always does what he says he’s going to do, and he doesn’t beat around the bush or use words that give him mobility,” said Senator John Hickenlooper, a Colorado Democrat. Senator Tim Kaine, a Virginia Democrat, agreed: “If he can find a way to work together, he will, and if it’s something you’re not on the same page with, he won’t lead you on.”

Straightforward is how most in the Senate describe McConnell too, but one factor distinguishes Thune from his iconic boss. An informal group of so-called fans has formed around the whip, calling itself the “Swoon for Thune Club.” The group consists of press members and staffers, primarily women, who share and create occasional memes about Thune, who presents well by Senate standards.

Thune was elected to the Senate in 2004 after serving three terms as South Dakota’s lone lawmaker in the US House of Representatives. That race saw him pull off a major upset win over Democrat Tom Daschle, who, at the time, served as the Democratic leader in the Senate. Before running for federal office, Thune served as the South Dakota railroad director, a position to which he was appointed by then governor George Mickelson. South Dakota’s rail system is a crucial conduit for the state’s most significant export: agricultural goods.

The state exports $5 billion in agricultural goods yearly, an average of $5,500 per person. “Those products move by train,” said Representative Dusty Johnson, who now serves in the seat Thune left to run for Senate. “In South Dakota, rail is what economically connects us to the world.” Some three decades after serving as the state’s top railroad appointee, Thune is now the dean of South Dakota’s congressional delegation, a job Johnson insists the Senate whip has performed with flying colors. “He values cooperation because he values success,” he said of Thune. “We do not run one another down. We do not cut one another off at the pass. John Thune is our team captain, and our team works exceptionally well together.”

Cooperation and collegiality have been rare in the 118th Congress, especially among House Republicans. Even in the Senate, McConnell’s once ironclad grip on the GOP conference has loosened as members of a new generation of lawmakers—like Rick Scott of Florida, J.D. Vance of Ohio, and Josh Hawley of Missouri—have openly challenged his leadership. Given the unruly backdrop, the next Senate GOP conference leader will have their work cut out for them. VF asked several Republican senators about their priorities for the next conference leader. “Someone who can develop and embrace a mission statement and goals for the conference and someone who’ll lead in a collaborative manner,” said Senator Ron Johnson of Wisconsin.