McConnell Incident Raises Fresh Questions On Age Ahead Of 2024 Campaigning

Further questions are set to be asked about the age of elected representatives after Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) suffered a public health incident during a press conference yesterday. McConnell, who froze midsentence for 20 seconds, downplayed the severity of the incident, later returned to his regular schedule.

• Punchbowl reports that, “Some senators suggest McConnell isn’t as dominant inside closed-door meetings as he’s been in the past and relies on other members of the GOP leadership to handle more of the workload. He also appears physically frail compared to just a short while ago.”
• McConnell’s health scare brings into sharper focus the increasing age of US elected representatives. Voters regularly cite the age of presidential candidates, President Biden and former President Trump, as key concerns ahead of the general election.
• Last year, a YouGov survey found that “more than half of Americans support a maximum age limit for elected officials.”
• An NBC poll in April found that 48% of voters cite age as a “major reason” why they don’t want President Biden to run for president again. 21% said that age was a “minor reason.”