The Democratic governor criticized the limited communication between the Republican senator and constituents after he suffered a fall.
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Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear (D) is demanding that Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-Kentucky) prove his “capacity to serve” or resign his seat, ramping up pressure on the former Senate majority leader as his absence stretches into a seventh week.
McConnell, 84, was hospitalized June 14 after falling at home, according to his office, and has not been publicly seen since.
In a letter to McConnell’s office dated Monday, Beshear noted it had been 43 days since news of McConnell’s hospitalization and that he has not cast votes or engaged in official activities in the time since. A copy of the letter was also sent to Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-South Dakota).
Aside from two photos and brief statements released by McConnell’s office, the senator has “made no effort to communicate with your Kentucky constituents or the nation,” Beshear wrote.
In the more recent photo, which McConnell’s office said was taken Sunday, the senator is smiling next to his wife, former transportation secretary Elaine Chao. Some Republicans have said they have had phone conversations with McConnell since his hospitalization, but his office has not released audio or video of the senator speaking.
“As Governor of the state he serves, I am calling on him to directly and verbally address the people of Kentucky and provide proof of his capacity to serve, or resign,” Beshear wrote.
If McConnell does not do that, Beshear added, the governor will insist Thune “fully investigate” the senator’s condition and begin the process of vacating McConnell’s seat if warranted.
“All of this speculation and even this letter could have been avoided with a minimal amount of transparency. … Kentuckians are just asking Senator McConnell to be honest,” Beshear wrote.
Representatives for McConnell and Thune did not immediately respond to requests for comment Tuesday. In a statement from his office Monday, McConnell said that he will miss a political event in Kentucky this weekend and that he was “keeping up with intense physical therapy.”
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In an accompanying statement Monday, Congress’s Office of the Attending Physician said McConnell was “not yet medically cleared to leave the rehab facility and return to the office.” The office noted that its physicians visit McConnell daily and that the senator’s childhood polio “continues to be a significant factor in his mobility.”
In his letter Monday, Beshear called out the attending physician’s written statement, saying it did “not discuss [McConnell’s] actual condition, including whether he can speak, reason, or carry out his duties as a senator.”
Beshear’s most recent demands are a significant escalation from when he publicly urged McConnell to disclose more details about his health earlier this month, amid rampant speculation about the senator’s absence. The governor, who is weighing a 2028 presidential run, has faced pressure from some Democrats to be more aggressive regarding McConnell.
If McConnell were to vacate his seat, it probably would set off a legal battle over how to fill it. Kentucky is one of five states that mandates Senate vacancies be filled only through a special election, according to the Congressional Research Service. That means, unlike after the sudden death of Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-South Carolina) this month, Beshear cannot appoint a replacement for McConnell right away.
It’s a recent change for Kentucky, part of an effort by McConnell to prevent a Democrat from succeeding him.
Until 2021, Kentucky law allowed the governor to temporarily fill a Senate vacancy until a special election could be held in concurrence with the next House election. But after Democrat Beshear was elected governor, McConnell encouraged the Republican-controlled legislature to pass a law requiring the governor to choose a replacement from three options selected by the former senator’s party. Then in 2024, the legislature adopted another law removing the governor from the process entirely.
Both changes to the process for a Senate vacancy became law over Beshear’s veto. The governor has suggested the 2024 statute — removing his appointment authority and mandating a special election — is unconstitutional, pointing to a section of the Kentucky Constitution that states: “Vacancies in all offices for the State at large, or for districts larger than a county, shall be filled by appointment of the Governor.”
Beshear told MS NOW this month that he would consider challenging the law so he could choose a temporary replacement senator.
“If there is a vacancy, I will look at my authority as governor to make sure that we are represented as Kentuckians, and certainly I’ll take a strong look at that section of our Kentucky Constitution,” he said.
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Theodoric Meyer contributed to this report.
