Influential Republicans in Washington and among the nationwide party elite are having a belated “oh s–t” moment over the previously unimaginable prospect that Kathy Barnette could win their party’s nomination for the open Senate seat in Pennsylvania.

Why it matters: In Barnette, who’s been soaring in the polls ahead of Tuesday’s primary, Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell would be dealing with a general election candidate who’d be an opposition researcher’s dream — potentially endangering the GOP effort to take back the Senate.

McConnell has been fixated on ensuring the 2022 midterms are not a repeat of the 2012 or 2010 cycles.

The Kentuckian said Republicans missed good chances to win the majority in those years because they nominated candidates who talked about things like “legitimate rape” or had to publicly assure voters they weren’t witches.