Elderly Republican Kentucky Senator Mitch McConnell fell to the ground Thursday afternoon in the Russell Senate Office Building basement, the latest in a troubling pattern of health scares for the 83-year-old lawmaker.
Video captured by members of the Sunrise Movement shows McConnell suddenly stumbling forward and falling on his side while an activist questioned him about Immigration and Customs Enforcement policies. After being helped to his feet by his aide and a Capitol Police officer, McConnell waved to cameras before being escorted away.
A spokesperson for McConnell told reporters the senator was “all good.”
Take a look —
NEW: Mitch McConnell takes a brutal fall in the Russell basement while being questioned by reporters.
He has fallen multiple times this year.
We need term limits. This is sad. pic.twitter.com/zLFOpLC5jh
— Benny Johnson (@bennyjohnson) October 16, 2025
The fall marks the latest in a series of alarming health issues for McConnell in recent years. In February, McConnell slipped and fell on stairs near the Senate chamber, then fell again the same day during the Republican conference lunch. He was confined to a wheelchair after, a “purely a precautionary measure” his office said.
In December 2024, McConnell fell during the Senate Republican lunch at the U.S. Capitol, spraining his wrist and getting a serious laceration on his face. He was later cleared to return to work.
And in March 2023, McConnell tripped at the Waldorf Astoria hotel in Washington and received a concussion and a fractured rib. The fall forced him to miss nearly six weeks of Senate work while he recovered.
McConnell also drew national attention for two separate episodes in the summer of 2023 where he appeared to freeze mid-sentence while speaking to reporters. During a July press conference, McConnell suddenly stopped talking and stared blankly ahead for more than 20 seconds before being escorted away by colleagues. A similar incident occurred in August at a Northern Kentucky Chamber of Commerce event.
McConnell’s health struggles also include unexplained injuries in 2020, when he appeared in the Capitol with bruised hands and a swollen lip. His office provided no explanation at the time.
McConnell survived polio as a child, which left him with lasting effects in his left leg. He has walked with a limp throughout his political career.
The longtime senator announced in February 2024 that he would step down from his role as Republican leader after a record-breaking 18 years at the helm of the conference.
“To serve Kentucky in the Senate has been the honor of my life. To lead my Republican colleagues has been the highest privilege. But, one of life’s most under appreciated talents is to know when it’s time to move on to life’s next chapter,” McConnell said.
First elected in 1984, McConnell is the longest-serving Senate party leader in U.S. history. He announced he would not seek reelection and plans to serve the remainder of his term, which ends in January 2027.