Mitch McConnell falls and sprains his wrist after GOP luncheon; colleague says he is fine

WASHINGTON —  Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell fell and sprained his wrist while walking out of a GOP luncheon on Tuesday, the latest in a series of medical incidents for him in recent years.

McConnell, the Kentucky Republican who is stepping down from his leadership post at the end of the year, was walking with Wyoming Sen. John Barrasso after his weekly party lunch when he tripped and fell, Barrasso said. McConnell walked back to his office on his own and medical personnel were seen heading into his office minutes later.

The longtime Republican leader, 82, also has a cut on his face, his office said, but “has been cleared to resume his schedule.” He did not attend a scheduled news conference immediately after the luncheon.

Barrasso, the No. 3 Senate leader and a physician, said McConnell was “fine” and “100%” alert after he fell.

McConnell later walked from his office to the Senate chamber for a vote, wearing a bandage on his left cheek and a brace on his left wrist.

In March 2023, McConnell was hospitalized with a concussion and missed several weeks of work after falling in a downtown hotel. After returning to work, he twice froze up during news conferences that summer, staring vacantly ahead before colleagues and staff came to his assistance.

McConnell had polio in his early childhood and he has long acknowledged some difficulty as an adult in walking and climbing stairs. In addition to his 2023 fall, he also tripped and fell in 2019 at his home in Kentucky, causing a shoulder fracture that required surgery.

McConnell has been in the Senate since 1984 and has been Republican leader since 2007. South Dakota Sen. John Thune will become Senate majority leader next year when Republicans retake the majority.

Jalonick and Groves write for the Associated Press. AP writers Farnoush Amiri and Lisa Mascaro contributed to this report.