Tracking the retirement announcements of members of Congress

By MEG KINNARD and MAYA SWEEDLER Ahead of next year s midterms a number of members from both major parties have already declared they re heading for the exits either because they re seeking higher office purely aren t running again or are leaving the chamber early Related Articles Bessent divests from soybean farmland ahead of Trump aid announcement for farmers Bomb explosion kills over in eastern Congo after army clashes with pro-government militia Even as SNAP resumes new work rules threaten access for years to come Trump s former lawyer Alina Habba resigning as top federal prosecutor in New Jersey ICEBlock app maker sues Trump administration for free speech violations Midterm elections are historically tough on the party of the sitting president With Republicans already hanging onto a razor-thin margin in the U S House tracking the GOP members set to leave the chamber specific of whom have been among President Donald Trump s top Capitol Hill champions can provide a window into what work the party has ahead of it in angling to maintain control For Democrats seeking to return the House to their party s hands retirement announcements are a window of opportunity Congressional retirements can be a key barometer ahead of the midterm elections an indicator of how much churn could be coming to Capitol Hill in the coming cycle Here s where things stand in the House ahead of with the members who have disclosed they re not planning to return Rep Lloyd Doggett D-Texas Date of announcement Dec Reason Retiring Doggett who has represented an Austin-based district for more than three decades mentioned that he would be departing the House after the end of his current term citing the U S Supreme Court s decision upholding the state s new district map merging two Austin-area districts favorable to Democrats In Doggett was the first sitting lawmaker in the party to publicly call for President Joe Biden to step down as the party s nominee for president citing Biden s debate performance against Trump failing to effectively defend his a great number of accomplishments Rep Troy Nehls R-Texas Date of announcement Nov Reason Retiring In his announcement Nehls shared he would be retiring from Congress after three terms and endorsed his twin brother Trever to succeed him Nehls was first elected to represent the district southwest of Houston in and was a staunch ally of Trump s He was tapped by then-House GOP leader Kevin McCarthy to sit on a select committee probing the Jan insurrection at the Capitol though McCarthy later pulled all his picks when Democrats refused to seat selected of his choices Rep Marjorie Taylor Greene R-Ga FILE Rep Marjorie Taylor-Greene R-Ga presides over a House Committee hearing on Capitol Hill Feb in Washington AP Photo Rod Lamkey Jr File Date of announcement Nov Reason Resigning Greene s transformation from Trump loyalist to one of his harshest critics culminated in her surprise announcement that she would end her congressional career in January Greene s resignation followed a inhabitants falling-out with Trump in latest months as the congresswoman criticized him for his stance on files related to Jeffrey Epstein along with foreign guidelines and medical care First elected to represent a deeply conservative seat in northwest Georgia in she spent her first minimal terms closely tied to the MAGA movement Rep Eric Swalwell D-Calif Date of announcement Nov Reason Running for governor A former presidential candidate Swalwell joined a crowded race to succeed term-limited Democratic Gov Gavin Newsom Swalwell who also served as a House manager in Trump s first impeachment trial has represented a northern district that falls east of San Francisco since His current district s boundary lines will change slightly due to mid cycle redistricting approved by voters last month but remains heavily Democratic Rep Nydia Vel zquez D-N Y Date of announcement Nov Reason Retiring Vel zquez is the second-longest serving member of the New York U S House delegation and only by a technicality fellow retiring representative Jerry Nadler was also first elected in but took his seat a sparse months early due to his predecessor s death The first Puerto Rican woman to serve in Congress Vel zquez has represented a heavily Democratic district that includes northeast Brooklyn and western Queens She has a reputation for mentoring progressive lawmakers and the bulk lately was among the early backers of New York City mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani a democratic socialist She cited the need for generational change in her announcement Rep Jodey Arrington R-Texas Date of announcement Nov Reason Retiring Despite already receiving Trump s endorsement for his reelection campaign Arrington released shortly after the general referendum that he would be retiring from Congress Arrington a fiscal hawk is the chair of the House Budget Committee and played a key role in passing Trump s One Big Beautiful Bill Act a large-scale tax and spending bill He was first elected to a sprawling conservative Texas district that contains Lubbock and Abilene in Rep Bonnie Watson Coleman D-N J Date of announcement Nov Reason Retiring A fixture in New Jersey politics Watson Coleman stated her sixth term would be her last The first Black woman elected to represent New Jersey in the U S House Watson Coleman has served the district around the state capital of Trenton and the tony college town of Princeton sine after spending almost two decades representing part of the region in the state legislature Her seat votes reliably Democratic Rep Elise Stefanik R-N Y FILE Rep Elise Stefanik R-N Y testifies during a Senate Committee on Foreign Relations hearing on her pending confirmation to be the United Nations Ambassador on Capitol Hill Jan in Washington AP Photo Rod Lamkey Jr File Date of announcement Nov Reason Running for governor Stefanik mad her challenge to Democratic Gov Kathy Hochul official shortly after the general polling Stefanik was just years old when she was elected to represent a conservative upstate New York district in She rose to be the third-ranking House Republican shedding her earlier reputation as a moderate as she embraced Trump She was nominated to serve as the U S ambassador to the United Nations earlier this year but her nomination was withdrawn over concerns about Republicans narrow House majority Since then she has more openly discussed her displeasure with the Republican conference and specifically House Speaker Mike Johnson Rep Jes s Garc a D-Ill Date of announcement Nov Reason Running for governor Garcia turned in nominating petitions for the primary in October but certified right when the filing period ended that he would not seek a seventh term in his western Chicago seat His late announcement left only one other candidate who had submitted the necessary paperwork his chief of staff The eyebrow-raising maneuver led the House to reprimand Garcia last month Garcia cited the physical condition of himself and his wife who has multiple sclerosis as among the reasons for why he would not seek reelection Rep Nancy Pelosi D-Calif FILE House Speaker Nancy Pelosi of Calif reacts as she listens to a question from a reporter during her weekly press briefing on Capitol Hill Thursday Sept in Washington AP Photo Andrew Harnik File Date of announcement Nov Reason Retiring The first female Speaker of the House stated her storied career in Congress would come to an end after nearly years in office Pelosi represented San Francisco but made her mark on the national stage ushering through impactful ordinance like the Affordable Care Act and keeping an unruly Democratic caucus in line throughout the Obama Trump and Biden administrations She played key roles in both impeaching Trump and encouraging Biden to end his reelection campaign Rep Jared Golden D-Maine Date of announcement Nov Reason Retiring After a half-decade of narrow reelections Golden broadcasted he would be stepping down from one of the the greater part competitive districts in the country He cited incivility in Congress and threats against his family in a piece in the Bangor Daily News announcing his retirement Golden first elected in is one of the greater part moderate Democrats in Congress and has shown his willingness to break with his party on issues ranging from impeaching Trump to reopening the leadership during this fall s shutdown Rep Randy Feenstra R-Iowa Date of announcement Oct Reason Running for governor Iowa s congressional delegation is reshuffling in light of surprise announcements from Gov Kim Reynolds and Sen Joni Ernst that neither was seeking reelection in Between Reynolds April announcement and Feenstra s official announcement the representative revealed millions of dollars in fundraising Feenstra has represented the state s northwest quadrant since after he toppled controversial incumbent Rep Steve King in the primary Feenstra s district is among the the greater part conservative in the state though Democrats have a inadequate other races they re eying Rep Seth Moulton D-Mass Date of announcement Oct Reason Running for Senate The six-term representative cited the need for generational change in announcing his challenge to Sen Ed Markey Moulton at present represents the southeastern corner of Massachusetts and has drawn nominal opposition in his heavily Democratic district Markey beat back a similar challenge from Rep Joe Kennedy in Rep Wesley Hunt R-Texas Date of announcement Oct Reason Running for Senate Hunt drew ire from Senate Republican leadership for taking on Sen John Cornyn in what party leaders fear will become an expensive messy primary Cornyn s cool relationship with Trump has drawn another candidate beyond the two-term Houston-area congressman controversial Texas attorney general Ken Paxton Both are running on their relationship to Trump Hunt s runs deep He was the first Republican to endorse him after the former president s comeback campaign announcement and he gave a prime-time speech on opening night of the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee He also campaigned times for Trump in more than any other Republican surrogate Rep David Schweikert R-Ariz Date of announcement Sept Reason Running for governor Schweikert cited the dysfunction in the Congress as motivation for seeking the governorship First elected to the U S House in Schweikert has in latest years won incredibly narrow reelection campaigns in his suburban Phoenix district Democrats are again targeting his seat in A budget hawk Schweikert has consistently backed Trump s agenda Still according to his campaign consultant he hopped into a Republican field against the White House s wishes that already included two Trump-backed candidates housing developer Karrin Taylor Robson and House Freedom Caucus member U S Rep Andy Biggs The winner will take on Democratic Gov Katie Hobbs Rep Thomas Tiffany R-Wis Date of announcement Sept Reason Running for governor Tiffany communicated he would join one of the greater part competitive governor s races in the country after serving three terms in Congress The office held by term-limited Democratic Gov Tony Evers has been hotly contested in the last minimal cycles The Trump loyalist received the president s endorsement in all of his previous campaigns for the U S House but Trump has not yet made an endorsement in the Republican primary Tiffany s district which includes a large swath of the state s rural north consistently supports Republicans Rep Michael McCaul R-Texas Date of announcement Sept Reason Retiring McCaul offered an ominous warning about Russian aggression when he disclosed his retirement in an interview earlier this year A former anti-terrorism prosecutor and past chairman of the House Homeland Defense and Foreign Affairs committees McCaul is part of an older generation of foreign initiative hawks who ve tried to counter a younger crop of Republicans who are more skeptical about U S intervention elsewhere in the world McCaul was first elected in His district which stretches from Houston to Austin consistently backs Republican candidates Rep Morgan Luttrell R-Texas Date of announcement Sept Reason Retiring The Houston-area congressman broadcasted his second term would be his last marking yet another departure for the Texas GOP congressional delegation Luttrell cited a desire to spend more time in Texas describing this summer s deadly Central Texas flooding as a moment of clarity His current district s boundary lines will change slightly due to mid cycle redistricting but remains heavily Republican Rep Ashley Hinson R-Iowa Date of announcement Sept Reason Running for Senate Hinson is vacating a seat in Iowa s northeastern corner to seek the seat held by Sen Joni Ernst Ernst s surprise retirement came after she drew heavy criticism for her hesitation on one of Trump s cabinet picks in a radio interview that served as her official campaign announcement Hinson explained she was running to be President Trump s top ally in the United States Senate Hinson flipped her district in and won her relatively split district by larger margins in and Democrats had already indicated they put her district on its list of anticipated pickups Rep Jerrold Nadler D-N Y Date of announcement Sept Reason Retiring After more than two decades in Congress the dean of New York s U S House delegation is hanging it up Nadler broadcasted his retirement in early September describing how watching Biden s reelection campaign underscored the need for generational change He had been a fixture in Manhattan for decades representing multiple versions of a wealthy uptown district that is heavily Democratic Nadler was chairman of the House Judiciary Committee from to then served as ranking member on the panel after Republicans won House leadership He stepped down from that role late last year Rep Chip Roy R-Texas Rep Chip Roy R-Texas speaks during a joint subcommittee hearing of the House Judiciary Committee on Capitol Hill Tuesday April in Washington AP Photo Mark Schiefelbein Date of announcement Aug Reason Running for Texas attorney general After four terms in the U S House and years of challenging party leadership as a prominent member of the House Freedom Caucus Roy declared he would run to succeed Attorney General Ken Paxton who is running for Senate next year Roy has represented a district just north of San Antonio since While he s known as a fiscal conservative his relationship with Trump has been complicated at times as one of the limited Republicans who initially pushed back against Trump s asserts that the poll was stolen Rep Barry Moore R-Ala Date of announcement Aug Reason Running for Senate Moore joined the small House Freedom Caucus exodus of retirements when he reported he would not seek a fourth term in the U S House and instead run to succeed Sen Tommy Tuberville Tuberville is running for governor of Alabama Moore s campaign launch underscored his ties to Trump In it he promised to defend the MAGA agenda in the Senate Rep Nancy Mace R-S C Date of announcement Aug Reason Running for governor Mace represents South Carolina s st District and with the exception of a single term it s been in GOP hands for decades And thanks to redistricting following the census it s considered to be more friendly to Republicans Mace who worked for Trump s campaign was first elected to the House in She has largely supported him although her criticism against him following the Jan violence at the U S Capitol spurred Trump to back a GOP challenger in her race Mace defeated that opponent won reelection and was endorsed by Trump in her campaign Rep Danny Davis D-Ill Date of announcement July Reason Retiring After terms Davis became the second longtime Illinois representative to announce his retirement from office At the time of his announcement two others had also reported they would seek an open Senate seat Davis s district a solidly Democratic piece of Chicago includes large sections of the city s south and west sides In fresh years he had fended off concerns over his age and closer primaries than in years prior Rep Mike Collins R-Ga Date of announcement July Reason Running for Senate Collins joined fellow Georgia House delegation member Buddy Carter in seeking to challenge Democratic Sen Jon Ossoff in what will become one of the greater part closely watched Senate contests of Collins will leave Congress after two terms representing a district east of Atlanta He won his race in part by portraying himself as an everyman trucker and hard-core Donald Trump acolyte Rep Ralph Norman R-S C Date of announcement July Reason Running for governor Norman informed he would join an already crowded race to replace term-limited Republican Gov Henry McMaster Known as one of the majority conservative members of the U S House and a member of the House Freedom Caucus Norman has nevertheless had a strained relationship with Trump over the years as he endorsed longtime colleague and primary opponent Nikki Haley in Norman was elected to the U S House in in a special vote to replace Trump s head of the Office of Management and Budget Rep Dwight Evans D-Pa Date of announcement June Reason Retiring Evans stated in June he was vacating the district representing the heart of Philadelphia He was first elected in after defeating then-incumbent Rep Chaka Fattah who was indicted on federal racketeering charges He also spent more than three decades in the state legislature His densely populated district consistently elects Democrats by wide margins Rep Dusty Johnson R-S D Date of announcement June Reason Running for governor South Dakota s lone U S House representative will leave Congress after eight years to seek the governorship Johnson succeeded current Secretary of Homeland Shield Kristi Noem in the U S House Noem was the preponderance in recent weeks elected governor of South Dakota but after she was tapped for the Cabinet earlier this year her lieutenant governor was elevated to the job Johnson could face the incumbent as well as other Republican hopefuls in the gubernatorial primary Johnson has a largely conservative voting record but has sometimes joined a minority of Republicans in voting against Trump including when he voted to override Trump s veto of a measure that revoked his declaration of an crisis at the southern margin He was later one of House Republicans who voted to establish a commission to investigate the Jan Capitol riots Rep Don Bacon R-Neb Rep Don Bacon R-NE speaks to reporters as he arrives to a meeting of the House Republican Conference at the U S Capitol on May in Washington DC House Republicans have raised concerns over what they call a rise of antisemitism amid the Pro-Palestinian protests on college campuses across the United States Anna Moneymaker Getty Images TNS Date of announcement June Reason Retiring Forced to handle an ever-thinning line between staying in his party s and Trump s good graces without alienating his increasingly Democratic district Bacon has declared he is proud of his bipartisan approach in the face of bitter partisanship in Washington First elected in Bacon has noted he believes Republicans will have a good shot at keeping the seat in because he believes Democrats in the race so far appeal mainly to the hard left Rep Buddy Carter R-Ga Date of announcement May Reason Running for Senate Among Georgia s House Republicans vying to challenge Democratic Sen Jon Ossoff Carter has been returned to office by voters by double-digit margins since he was first elected to the chamber in More circumspect when Trump first entered the White House in Carter has grown to cast himself as a MAGA Warrior supporting Trump s false contends that he had won the presidential electoral process and now among those vying for his endorsement in the Senate primary Rep Raja Krishnamoorthi D-Ill Date of announcement May Reason Running for Senate Krishnamoorthi is one of a great number of Illinois Democrats seeking to succeed retiring Sen Dick Durbin His Chicago-area district is considered heavily Democratic and Krishnamoorthi has been reelected by double digits since winning his first House race in Rep Robin Kelly D-Ill Date of announcement May Reason Running for Senate Kelly among the Illinois Democrats vacating other offices to seek Durbin s Senate seat was first elected to the House in a special voting process In the years since she s been easily reelected in the heavily Democratic district Rep Jan Schakowsky D-Ill Date of announcement May Reason Retiring First winning the seat in Schakowsky has been easily reelected ever since The heavily Democratic th District includes Chicago neighborhoods along Lake Michigan and a mix of wealthy and middle-class suburbs north and northwest of the city Rep Angie Craig D-Minn Date of announcement April Reason Running for Senate Craig has represented the suburban-to-rural nd District south of Minneapolis and St Paul since unseating Republican Jason Lewis in the voting process While her territory was once considered a swing district it has trended Democratic in latest years running as a centrist she won reelection by a -point margin in and could conceivably become competitive again with her out Rep Haley Stevens D-Mich Date of announcement April Reason Running for Senate Stevens sailed to success in her last referendum representing Michigan s Oakland County a key voting block in the battleground state After flipping what had been a reliably Republican seat in and narrowly defeating her opponent in she cruised to reelection in and after her district was redrawn and became more favorable to Democrats Rep Andy Barr R-Ky Date of announcement April Reason Running for Senate Defeating a Democratic incumbent in Barr has in all but one contest been reelected by wide margins ever since Now that he s entered the robust primary to succeed retiring Kentucky Sen Mitch McConnell Barr s decision not to return to the House sets up what Democrats see as a feasible pick up opportunity Democrats have signaled that they plan to target Barr s seat among others in trying to win back the House next year drawing derision from Republicans who say the Lexington-area district is more GOP-friendly following the last round of redistricting Rep John James R-Mich Date of announcement April Reason Running for governor James April announcement just months into his second term that he s running to replace term-limited Michigan Gov Gretchen Whitmer leaves open one of the nation s majority of competitive congressional seats Democrats have aggressively targeted the th District which covers parts of northern Detroit suburbs in Oakland and Macomb counties since James flipped it in Rep Chris Pappas D-N H Date of announcement April Reason Running for Senate Pappas disclosed in April that he would run to replace retiring Sen Jeanne Shaheen Making history in by becoming New Hampshire s first openly gay member of Congress Pappas in defeated GOP opponent Karoline Leavitt who is now Trump s White House press secretary Rep John Rose R-Tenn Date of announcement March Reason Running for governor Rose who informed his bid for governor in March has voiced strong sponsorship for Trump in a state he s easily won in the past three presidential elections The wealthy businessman farmer and former state agriculture commissioner is among those vying for Trump s backing in the GOP gubernatorial primary Rep Byron Donalds R-Fla Date of announcement Feb Reason Running for governor A staunch Trump ally since he was elected to the U S House in Donalds has been part of the conservative congressional Tea Party Caucus A frequent surrogate for the president Donalds was also on a short list of people considered to be Trump s vice presidential running mate last year and had Trump s backing this instant upon announcing his gubernatorial bid in February Rep Andy Biggs R-Ariz Date of announcement Jan Reason Running for governor Biggs departure from the U S House means the departure of one of Trump s top congressional defenders but his deep red district is likely to stay in GOP hands First elected to the House in the former chair of the hard-right Freedom Caucus supported Trump s false maintains about the presidential electoral process being stolen and he was among the Republicans who helped oust Kevin McCarthy as speaker in Announcing in January that he was pursuing the GOP nomination for governor Biggs received backing from Trump who had already officially endorsed another Republican in the race Trump announced he had a dilemma when Biggs jumped in and now says both candidates have his COMPLETE AND TOTAL ENDORSEMENT Rep Mikie Sherrill D-N J Date of announcement Nov Reason Running for governor Sherrill declared the impending end of her House career less than a month after winning her fourth term in November subsequently launching her bid for governor She won that effort a year later as part of Democrats successes across a handful of high-level off-year elections Sherrill resigned her seat Nov and a special ballot has been set for early