Rick Scott won’t be the next Senate Majority Leader, after coming in third in the first round of votes among Republican members.

But like the president-elect, Rick Scott could be in a position to push the country sharply to the right if Republicans in the U.S. Senate elect him as their leader on Wednesday. Scott, 71, is a relative newcomer to the Senate who lacks leadership experience,

He's a wealthy Floridian who has taken aim at fellow Republicans while pushing to consolidate power in Washington, and his name is not Donald Trump. Senator Rick Scott fell short in his attempt to lead Republicans in the U.

U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz announced Wednesday he was backing Rick Scott of Florida over fellow Texan John Cornyn in the vote for the next Senate majority leader. In a post of X, Cruz said he believed Senate Republicans needed a change in leadership.