Herman Cain’s Fed Chances Dim Amid Republican Senate Opposition

Herman Cain’s chances to win confirmation to the Federal Reserve plummeted on Thursday as at least four Republican senators indicated they would not back President Trump’s choice to fill a Fed seat.

Those defections would be enough to defeat Mr. Cain in a divided Senate, should Mr. Trump follow through with his plans to formally nominate him.

Mr. Cain, a former pizza magnate whose 2012 presidential run was upended by claims of sexual harassment, is currently undergoing a background check and President Trump has said he will wait for that to be completed before officially nominating him to the seven-member Fed board.

Senator Kevin Cramer, Republican of North Dakota, told reporters on Thursday that he “would vote no” if asked to confirm Mr. Cain. Three other Republican senators — Lisa Murkowski of Alaska, Mitt Romney of Utah and Cory Gardner of Colorado — have also said publicly that they would not support Mr. Cain.

Senator Mitch McConnell, Republican of Kentucky and the majority leader, declined to say on Thursday whether the White House should drop Mr. Cain. But he did say that the administration should consider whether the person it sends up can be confirmed.

“I think that the White House ought to take into consideration obviously two things before making a nomination,” he said, citing the background check and “ the possibility of being confirmed.”

He added that “several of our members have had strong feelings about people who’ve been mentioned.”

Mr. McConnell has urged members to make those concerns known, saying public displays of opposition by Republicans “would be helpful to the administration” in choosing whether or not to send Mr. Cain’s name to the Senate.