Mitch McConnell will leave his position as Republican leader in the Senate

Mitch McConnell, the longest-serving Senate leader in history, has announced that he will step down as Senate Republican leader in November. He maintained that his party colleagues will have time to decide who will succeed him in office.

"This will be my last term as Republican leader in the Senate. I’m not going anywhere anytime soon. However, I’ll complete my job my colleagues have given me until we select a new leader in November and they take the helm next January. I’ll finish the job that people Kentucky hired me to do as well, albeit from a different seat," McConnell said.

Earlier, the AP published comments from McConnell in which he expressed that "one of life's most underappreciated talents is to know when it is time to move on to life's next chapter."

The Republican had already promised in September to leave office after being questioned about his health after he froze in a public appearance for the second time. The situation generated concern about the senator's physical capacity. In fact, after the episode, some Republican senators met to discuss the future of the GOP leadership in the Senate faced if McConnell were unable to continue with his duties.

"I am going to finish my term as leader and I’m going to finish my Senate term," McConnell said at the time.