Mitch McConnell Misses Roll Call Vote

Sen. Mitch McConnell was missing from the Senate’s voting tally again Tuesday morning, barely a day after returning from a three-month absence and declaring it was time to get back to work.

The 84-year-old Kentucky Republican did not participate in the vote confirming President Donald Trump’s nominee Matthew R. Byrne to the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Ohio, according to the Senate’s official roll call.

Byrne won confirmation 52-45. McConnell was the only Republican recorded as not voting in the roll call listed at 11:15 a.m. Democratic Sen. Chris Coons of Delaware and independent Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont also did not vote.

The absence followed McConnell’s closely watched appearance Monday, when he arrived in a wheelchair and cast his first Senate vote since June 11.

That vote was on the same nominee. McConnell supported advancing Byrne’s nomination Monday, helping Republicans carry a procedural motion 47-46. When the nomination came up for final approval Tuesday morning, his name appeared in the not-voting column.

The official record does not explain why McConnell missed the vote.

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His return Monday followed a June 14 fall that required hospitalization and weeks of inpatient rehabilitation. In an Aug. 6 statement, McConnell announced that he would continue recovering at home while undergoing physical therapy.

Speaking to reporters outside the Senate chamber Monday, the longtime Republican leader signaled he was ready to resume his duties.

“It is time to get back to work and finish the job for this Congress.”

McConnell pointed to the Farm Bill and support for NATO among his priorities, ABC News reported.

He also acknowledged that his recovery was incomplete. According to The Associated Press, McConnell indicated he could still miss votes while recovering, with lingering difficulties from childhood polio complicating his return.

McConnell is not seeking reelection and is scheduled to leave office in January 2027. Republicans confirmed Byrne without him Tuesday, but the missed roll call came immediately after his first appearance on the Senate floor in months.

WATCH:

🚨 EXCLUSIVE: Mitch McConnell has resurfaced, 3 months after disappearing from public view. https://t.co/WBeMp32VeM

🎥: @hicharliecotton pic.twitter.com/fHVhJ89DFe

— TMZ (@TMZ) September 14, 2026

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