Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell suggested Thursday that Republicans may lose their hold on the upper chamber of Congress in November, Politico reports.
Speaking to a civic group in Louisville, Kentucky, McConnell told his home state listeners "I may or may not be calling the shots next year," according to the Associated Press.
He didn't blame GOP presidential nominee Donald Trump for hurting their chances as others have, but he did say that it's "stating the obvious" that both Trump and Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton are not "widely appealing to the American people." McConnell added that he hopes the New York billionaire "settles down and follows the script."
The majority leader avoided a question about Trump's "sarcastic" remark calling President Barack Obama the "founder" of the Islamic State, saying instead: "I'm hoping that we can make this election about Hillary Clinton. I think if we do, we can win."
Following Trump's nomination, several Republican Senate candidates across the country worried publicly that the choice would hurt the GOP's chances of retaining their majority.
Some Republicans are hoping that voters will split their ballots, choosing candidates from multiple parties in different races, suggesting that those turned off by Trump could still vote for Republicans in congressional races.
"The unfavorable levels at the top of the ticket set up a condition that might enhance more ticket-splitting than we have seen in recent elections," Christopher Borick, director of Pennsylvania's Muhlenberg College Institute of Public Opinion, told The Washington Post.
"If Trump becomes so unacceptable to a number of Republicans that they can't vote for him, that might become a scenario where ticket-splitting perks up a bit," Borick said.
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