Senate campaign chief 'optimistic' for GOP majority despite darkening midterm climate

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Senate Republican campaign chair Tim Scott ‘extremely optimistic’ about expanding majority but spotlights ‘difficult’ climate

National Republican Senatorial Committee chair Sen. Tim Scott of South Carolina speaks exclusively with Fox News Digital about the GOP’s chances in the midterm elections.

PALM BEACH, Fla. — National Republican Senatorial Committee (NRSC) chair Sen. Tim Scott says he remains "incredibly optimistic" the GOP can not only hold but expand its current 53–47 majority in the fall 2026 midterm elections.

But as Republicans battle stiff political headwinds as the party in power in the nation's capital traditionally loses seats in the midterms and as the GOP faces a rough political climate fueled by economic concerns amid persistent inflation and President Donald Trump's underwater approval ratings, Scott isn't sugar-coating things.

"There's no doubt the climate has gotten more and more difficult by the day, it seems like at times," Scott said in an exclusive interview with Fox News Digital at an annual economic conference in Florida hosted by the Club for Growth, an influential and politically potent conservative political group that pushes for fiscal responsibility.

Scott in early February gave fellow GOP senators some straight talk about the party's chances in the midterm elections, when he briefed his colleagues at a closed-door meeting, according to sources in the room.

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National Republican Senatorial Committee (NRSC) chair Sen. Tim Scott says he remains "incredibly optimistic" the GOP can not only hold but expand its majority.  (Paul Steinhauser/Fox News)

The NRSC chair told Fox News Digital in December 2025 that in the battle for the majority, "54 is clearly within our grasp right now, but with a little bit of luck, 55 is on our side."

Asked again in his Fox News Digital interview Saturday, Scott said, "I think we have a possibility of more than 53 seats."

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"The good news is we have a president who made promises, he's been keeping those promises, and we have been able to recruit the highest quality candidates anyone could want in every single battleground state," Scott said. 

Republicans battle stiff political headwinds as the party in power in the nation's capital traditionally loses seats in the midterms.  (Cornell Watson/Bloomberg/Getty Images)

Highlighting seats the GOP's aiming to flip, Scott pointed to Georgia, where Republicans view first-term Sen. Jon Ossoff as the most vulnerable Democrat seeking re-election in 2026. He also spotlighted open Democratic-held seats in battleground Michigan, swing state New Hampshire, and blue-leaning Minnesota.

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Scott said he's "incredibly optimistic, not only about holding the majority, but still expanding the majority through Georgia, Michigan, New Hampshire and even Minnesota, we have a strong candidate."

The candidate he was referring to in Minnesota is former NBC Sports reporter turned conservative activist and commentator Michele Tafoya.

Michele Tafoya is interviewed by Fox News Digital as she launches a Republican Senate campaign in Minnesota (Paul Steinhauser/Fox News)

But Democrats are targeting Maine, where longtime GOP Sen. Susan Collins is running for re-election in the blue-leaning northern New England state, and battleground North Carolina, where Republicans are defending an open seat in the race to succeed retiring GOP Sen. Thom Tillis.

Democrats are also trying to flip GOP-held Senate seats in Texas, Ohio, Alaska and Iowa, which are all red states.

"Voters are sick and tired of Trump and Senate Republicans’ toxic agenda raising prices and threatening their health care," the rival Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee (DSCC) emphasized in a social media post. "Voters across the country are ready to send Senate Republicans packing this November."

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In Texas, the NRSC is backing longtime GOP Sen. John Cornyn, who is now facing off with Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, a MAGA firebrand, in a costly and combustible primary runoff.

Trump said last week, following the primary election where no candidate in the crowded Republican field cracked 50% to win the nomination, that he would soon make an endorsement.

Sen. John Cornyn of Texas, left, President Donald Trump, center, and Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton.  (Graeme Sloan/Bloomberg via Getty Images; )

The NRSC and Senate Majority Leader John Thune, who is also backing Cornyn, are concerned that a Paxton victory could give the Democrats a path to flipping the red seat, thanks to the state attorney general's political baggage, including a plethora of past scandals and a current messy divorce.

"The one thing we know about John Cornyn is he will win Texas. If you want to have the clearest path of victory, John Cornyn is your guy," Scott said. "President Trump is the only person that can make that a reality immediately through this runoff process."

Scott said "we hope and pray" that Trump will endorse Cornyn. But he added: "The President is going to do what the President is going to do. I won't pretend to influence his final decision, but I will say, I'm certainly praying for John Cornyn to be our our nominee."

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Oil prices have shot up in the week and a half since the U.S. and Israel attacked Iran, instantly resulting in higher costs for gasoline across America. That's a major concern for Republicans in a midterm election cycle where the economy, and specifically affordability, is the top concern of voters.

Gas prices in Newfields, New Hampshire, on March 9, 2026 (Paul Steinhauser/Fox News )

"I think the economy will continue to get better month over a month," an optimist Scott predicted. "I think the rest of this year we'll see unfolding good information, good facts about why the American people should focus on the Republican Party and keep us in the majority."

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And with the annual tax filing deadline just more than a month away, Scott touted the numerous tax cuts kicking in this year in the GOP's sweeping "big, beautiful bill", which Trump signed into law in summer 2025. 

Scott touted "a bigger tax return for millions of Americans, that's great news. The more they see more money in their pockets, and the more they attribute it to the Republican Party, the better we're going to do this election season."