WASHINGTON — A looming battle among Senate Republicans over who to choose their next majority leader is turning into an early test of the power that President-elect Donald Trump’s “MAGA” movement will wield in his second term.

The three-way race to replace Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., pits John Thune, R-Ky., against Sen. John Cornyn, a former McConnell Rep., and underdog Sen. Rick Scott, R- Fla.

The battle will test the staying power of long-standing Republicans rooted in an institutionalist view of the Senate, like Thune and Cornyn, against an emboldened pro-Trump wing seeking to destroy any vestiges of the old GOP as it returns to power.

Scott is trying to claim the latter mantle and told NBC News in an interview on Monday that he would advance “Trump’s agenda” if elected.

“I talk to all my colleagues and they are clear about what they want and I know we have to change. They want to be treated as equals, they want to be part of a team. They know I have a great relationship with Trump and the Speaker of the House, and I’m a businessman. And I will complete the Trump agenda,” Scott said.

Online influencers MAGA have begun an online pressure campaign seeking to sink current and former Reps. McConnell — and boost Scott — ahead of a candidate forum Tuesday and a closed-door election expected Wednesday.

Right-wing commentator Tucker Carlson said Scott is “the only candidate who agrees with Donald Trump” and claimed the other two contenders “hate Trump and what he ran for.” (Thune and Cornyn have criticized Trump in the past, but both have endorsed Trump this year.)

Also, Trump’s billionaire benefactor Elon Musk APPROVED Scott, saying Monday, “The new Senate Majority Leader must respond to the will of the people.”

Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., one of Trump’s top allies on the Hill, encouraged senators to pick Scott for the job. “The Republican convention should elect a leader who represents the People, not the way it has been done for decades,” Greene said in a statement to NBC News.

But it is far from clear that the campaign will be successful. The Senate is a famously insular body that is relatively detached from populist fervor, giving members six-year terms and usually operating on a seniority basis. It would be unusual for Scott to pass over two colleagues who have served much longer, cultivated deeper relationships, and each paid their dues to fulfill their duties.

Most importantly, the election will be held by secret ballot. Unlike votes on legislation and nominations—as well as the vote for the Speaker of the House—votes for Senate leadership are anonymous. That means relationships will be paramount and the online pro-Trump army won’t know how members voted.

“It’s a strong online presence that ultimately doesn’t add up to Senate votes,” said one Senate Republican aide, who requested anonymity to speak candidly about the dynamics of the race. “And senators are reacting negatively to it.”

Most notably, Trump himself has not weighed in as all three candidates try to show their pro-Trump bona fides.

Scott called Trump in May to ask for his support in the leadership race, which he said he would appreciate, and his goal is to pressure Trump to announce his support before Wednesday’s election, according to two people familiar with the matter. his thinking.

In interviews on Election Day, Scott said he and Trump communicated via text.

But Scott was coy when asked Monday by NBC News if he thought he had Trump’s support.

“I welcome anyone’s support. He endorsed me in 2022 in my race against Mitch McConnell,” Scott said.

When asked if he wanted the president-elect’s endorsement, the senator said, “I’m not going to talk about private conversations.”

“Thune’s Losing Race”

Scott is less popular among his peers than Thune and Cornyn; in 2022, he received just 10 votes when he unsuccessfully challenged McConnell for the top job.

Thune and Cornyn have well-established relationships as conference leaders, and both have donated time and money to help elect the new Republican majority this year.

“It’s Thune’s race to lose,” said Mike Davis, a staunch Trump ally who previously served as a top Senate Republican aide.

But Davis said the price of admission for that job will be to advance Trump’s agenda.

“Senate Republicans — especially Senate Republican leadership — must understand that the American people returned President Trump to the White House with his America First agenda. And any Republican leadership candidate who disagrees with that should get the hell out of the way,” he said.

Scott, who just won a second six-year term, said in an interview that his victory in Florida shows that Republicans need not moderate their views.

“We never moderated our positions and kept winning,” Scott said in an interview Friday. “Now, if you look at the country, we are the center of the Republican Party. … The whole country is heading in our direction.”

Just before last week’s election, Scott did searched for to become a bridge between House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., and his Senate GOP conference and push Mitch McConnell out of relevance. And with Republicans on track to retain a slim majority in the House, Scott sees his Louisiana connection as an advantage in the leadership race.

Several sitting senators have publicly endorsed him: Sen. Ron Johnson, R-Wis.; Marco Rubio, R-Fla.; Rand Paul, R-Ky.; Bill Hagerty, R-Tenn.; and Tommy Tuberville, R-Ala. Some of them, such as Rubio, Hagerty and Tuberville, have been promoted to senior positions in the Trump administration.

And of the three senators in the race to succeed McConnell, Scott was the only one to do an interview on Sunday shows this weekend, where he touted his “close relationship” with the speaker during a Sunday Fox News interview .

The interview and the online MAGA campaign were deliberate moves to project a wave of support for the newly elected Florida re-elect and to put pressure on Thune, who is seen as the front-runner.

Trump did a public request: The next GOP leader should tout his ability to make “vacation appointments” to temporarily install staff without Senate confirmations.

“I spent eight months listening carefully to my colleagues about their vision for the next chapter of the Senate Republican Conference, especially as we started with President Trump,” Thune said in a statement to NBC News. “One thing is clear: we must act quickly and decisively to get the president’s cabinet and other nominees in place as soon as possible to begin fulfilling the mandate we have been sent to execute and all options are on the table to do that. happens, including break schedules. We cannot let Chuck Schumer and the Democrats in the Senate block the will of the American people.”

Cornyn he swore that if Democrats block Trump’s nominees, “we’ll stay in session, including the weekend, until they cave. Furthermore, the Constitution expressly gives the President the power to make recess appointments.”

Scott, meanwhile, answered to Trump on X: “100% agree.”