What is Mitch McConnell’s net worth? Former Senate Majority Leader, 83, announces retirement from Senate

Former Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) has decided not to seek reelection in 2026.

Updated on: Feb 23, 2025, 08:38:56 IST

By Sumanti Sen

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Former Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) will reportedly announce on Thursday, February 20, that he will not seek reelection in 2026. McConnell, who stepped down from leadership last year, was the longest-serving party leader in US history. He went on to become one of Donald Trump’s GOP antagonists ever since the new administration started.

Mitch McConnell, 83, announces retirement from Senate (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein, File) (AP)

Addressing colleagues on the Senate floor on Thursday, McConnell, 83, said, "Representing our commonwealth has been the honor of my lifetime. I will not seek this honor an eighth time. My current term in the Senate will be my last." He added that his birthday, February 20, was a good time to make his announcement.

What is Mitch McConnell’s net worth?

According to the website Open Secrets, McConnell had an estimated net worth of $34,137,534 in 2018. In 2021, Forbes estimated that he and his wife, former cabinet secretary Elaine Chao, were worth about $30 million.

McConnell sits on a multimillion-dollar fortune, with he and Chao owning homes in Louisville, Kentucky, and Washington, D.C. They also own a large portfolio of stocks, bonds and money market funds.

McConnell was not born rich. He contracted polio as a young boy in the Deep South, and said in a 1990 campaign ad, “I recovered, but my family almost went broke.”

Over the years, after McConnell and Chao got married, their fortune remained relatively static. It was in 2008 that they suddenly got a whole lot wealthier when they received a multimillion-dollar gift from Chao’s father, James Chao, in memory of her mother, who died a year back. A copy of a will for Chao’s mother which Forbes obtained in 2019, detailing her holdings at the time of her death, worth nearly $59 million. It included a “closely held business interest” worth $57.5 million.

Chao’s father, 97, is still alive. It is likely that another rush of money will make its way to Chao and McConnell when he dies.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Sumanti Sen
Sumanti Sen covers everything that’s happening in the US, from politics to entertainment, but her expertise lies in covering crime news. She has comprehensively chronicled the Idaho student murders, the Laken Riley and Iryna Zarutska cases, and the killing of Charlie Kirk, among other incidents. Over the years, she has interviewed several victims/families of victims of crimes seeking justice. She digs up stories that might otherwise remain unheard, and does her bit to ensure that victims and survivors’ voices are heard. Sumanti’s many years of experience also include interviews with Hamas attack survivors and mental health experts, among others. Her coverage of the October 7 Hamas attack on Israel and interviews with survivors of the tragedy, coupled with her other works including the Titan submersible coverage, earned her the Digi Journo of the Quarter award during her first year at Hindustan Times. Sumanti actively tracks missing person cases in the United States, and peruses Reddit and other social media platforms to bring to light cases that frequently elude public attention. She has extensively covered the disappearances of Nancy Guthrie, Thomas Medlin, Beau Mann, and Sudiksha Konanki, among others. When not at work, you will either find her with her novels, or with her beloved rescue pooches.Read More

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