Secretary of State Mike Pompeo will not run for a seat in the Senate this year, rebuffing long-running overtures from GOP congressional leaders who had encouraged the sitting secretary to reenter electoral politics.
Pompeo informed Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R., Ky.) Monday afternoon that he has chosen not to run, sources confirmed to the Washington Free Beacon Monday evening.
McConnell and other Republican leaders have been encouraging Pompeo to run for a Senate seat in Kansas since last year, seeing it as the first step to a potential run for president in 2024.
"Leader McConnell spoke with Secretary Pompeo this afternoon where he indicated he will not be running for Senate," a source close to McConnell told the Free Beacon. "Leader McConnell believes Secretary Pompeo is doing an incredible job as secretary of state and is exactly where the country needs him to be right now."
Pompeo’s decision to remain in his current job comes as the Trump administration navigates an escalating international crisis following the killing of top Iranian military leader Qassem Soleimani late last week.