John Cornyn is running to succeed Mitch McConnell after years waiting in his shadow. But the far-right, in Texas and Washington, are putting up a fight.

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.

Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas), a leading conservative, announced Wednesday morning he will back Sen. Rick Scott (R-Fla.) for Senate majority leader. “This morning, I’ll be voting for Rick Scott for GOP Leader,

Cruz made the announcement less than an hour before Republican senators were scheduled to vote for their next leader to replace longtime GOP leader Mitch McConnell.

U.S. Senate Republicans are voting for a new leader and Sen. Ted Cruz has announced he will not be voting for fellow Texan, Sen. John Cornyn.