If McConnell's seat becomes vacant after Aug. 3, Kentucky's 2024 succession law leaves no time for a special election—meaning it would stay empty until January.

McConnell’s hospitalization has fueled questions over Kentucky’s Senate vacancy law and whether it could withstand a constitutional challenge.

McConnell, the former longtime Senate leader who declined to seek an eighth term following a series of health scares, was admitted to a hospital on June 14.