"The Notorious" might be "Minister McGregor" in a matter of years ... 'cause Conor McGregor tells TMZ Sports he's open to a career in politics!
We got Conor chillin' in NYC with his GF, Dee Devlin ... and the UFC mega-star was positively giddy when we asked him about potentially running for office -- something he teased on social media earlier this week.
"Maybe, who knows?! I know they're shakin' in their boots anyway!!" Conor said.
He was clearly in a joking mood, but Conor seemed dead serious is his cryptic message criticizing the Irish government.
There's more ... when our guy tried (emphasis on "tried") asking about a fight with Khabib Nurmagomedov ... McGregor immediately brought up Floyd Mayweather, saying he "needs to fight again."
With Floyd teasing an MMA fight all week, ya gotta wonder ... could Floyd vs. Conor 2 actually happen in the UFC?