McConnell’s freezes raise concerns over his seat, Senate future. Your questions, answered

A second public freeze by U.S. Sen. Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., Wednesday has spurred fresh questions about his age, his health and his term, which is set to end in January 2027.

While fielding questions from reporters Wednesday at event in Northern Kentucky, McConnell, the Senate minority leader, seemingly froze for around 30 seconds before an aide stepped up to speak with him and repeat the question.

It is the second such event in recent months. McConnell also appeared to freeze while speaking in the U.S. Senate building in late July, though he later rejoined the press conference, telling the crowd, “I’m fine.”

Here’s what we know about the health issues, McConnell’s future as Kentucky’s senior senator and other questions.

How old is Mitch McConnell?

The 81-year-old has long battled health issues, even before his recent health troubles, which may have started earlier this year with a fall at a Washington, D.C.-area hotel in March.

In his 2016 memoir “The Long Game,” McConnell wrote about his childhood battle with polio and a period when his mother led him through painful physical therapy exercises for two years.

However, McConnell isn’t the only senator to have faced questions about age and fitness for public office recently. Sen. Diane Feinstein, 89, D-Calif., has faced similar scrutiny after complications she experienced recovering from shingles, including encephalitis, or swelling of the brain, according to CBS News.

According to Pew Research Center, the overall median age for Senate Democrats and Republicans is nearly the same: 65.4 for Democrats, 65.3 for Republicans.

What caused McConnell’s freeze?

McConnell has been evasive when responding to reporters’ questions about his health, and the nature of his health issues remains unclear.

However, during a fall in March, McConnell suffered a concussion and a fractured rib.

Doctors in some press reports have speculated McConnell may be having small seizures, specifically petit mal seizures, which momentarily cause someone to lose awareness of their surroundings and become temporarily unresponsive.

What has McConnell said about his plans for reelection?

After a string of health episodes this year, McConnell has been evasive about his plans for reelection.

In June, a month before his first highly publicized freeze, McConnell was asked about his plans for an eighth term in office.

“You’re asking me to predict what I might do three years from now. I don’t have a prediction on that. No news to make,” the GOP leader said in a response to a question from the Herald-Leader at an event in Lexington.

What happens if a senator resigns or dies in office?

If the Senate minority leader were to resign or die while in office, a Senate vacancy law McConnell and other Republicans in Kentucky pushed for would come into play.

Should McConnell decide to give up his seat before the 2026 election, the governor, Democrat Andy Beshear, would select his replacement from a list of three options from the Republican Party, as required by the law. However, there’s been some speculation Democrats in the state may challenge that, with Beshear leading the charge.

According to several attorneys connected to the Kentucky Democratic Party who spoke to the Herald-Leader, Beshear would either allow himself to be sued after doing an end run around Republicans to appoint his own Senate pick or bring the legal challenge himself.

In the event McConnell does not fulfill his term, the fate of the seat may be decided by whoever wins Kentucky’s governor race in November — incumbent Beshear or Republican challenger, McConnell ally and state Attorney General Daniel Cameron.

Who would replace McConnell?

Cameron, who used to work for McConnell offering legal counsel, has been eyed as a potential successor to Kentucky’s longest-serving U.S. senator.

At 37, Cameron has made history more than once in Kentucky.

The first came in 2019, when he became attorney general, making Cameron the first Black individual in the Bluegrass State to be independently elected to a statewide office. He made history again when he won his party’s nomination for governor, once again becoming the first Black individual to do so in the state.

Nationally, Cameron is known for his involvement in the Breonna Taylor Case, when he announced his office would not to charge the two police officers who had shot and killed her. The decision led to condemnations from A-list celebrities, protests on Cameron’s front lawn and threats against his life.

But when it comes to any Senate ambitions he may or may not have, Cameron’s candidacy for governor complicates things.

Only hours before McConnell’s freeze up Wednesday, Cameron declined to express any interest in a Senate seat and insisted he was focusing on the governor’s race in an interview with McClatchyDC.

Tellingly, when he was asked point blank if he had ever considered becoming McConnell’s successor or running for Senate himself, Cameron replied: “I’ve made my intentions clear and I made those intentions clear in January of this year when I declared officially my candidacy for governor.”

Can McConnell be removed from office?

The Constitution does outline a process for removing a sitting senator from office.

Article 1, Section 5 of the Constitution ensures: “Each House [of Congress] may determine the Rules of its proceedings, punish its members for disorderly behavior, and, with the concurrence of two-thirds, expel a member.”

However, it seems unlikely McConnell would be removed.

Since 1789, according to the Senate’s official website, the body has expelled only 15 members and 14 of those were expelled during the Civil War for supporting the Confederacy. There have been other cases in which the Senate has considered expulsion, but either dropped the proceedings or failed to complete them before the member resigned office.

Previous coverage from McClatchy reporters David Catanese, Austin Horn and Tessa Duvall contributed to this report.

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