A record number of lawmakers said they don’t plan to run for reelection to their current seats for a variety of reasons, particularly in the House of Representatives, according to several analyses.
The latest is Nevada Rep. Mark Amodei, who announced his retirement on Friday.
“Serving the people of Nevada has been the honor of my lifetime. Nobody is prouder of our Nevada Congressional District than me,” he said in a statement. “Thank you for the honor. Every achievement worth doing began with listening to Nevadans and fighting for our values.”
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According to The Associated Press and NPR, more than 10% of the current Congress said they won’t return to their present positions.
As of Feb.6, there are 12 senators and 51 House members leaving, making for a total of 63. Of those Representatives, 21 are Democrats and 30 are Republicans, not including the nine members who resigned or died during their terms. Those seats will be filled before November’s general election.
The AP reports that this is the highest percentage of incumbent lawmakers who plan to leave at this point in the calendar year since former President Barack Obama’s administration.
Some, like Amodei, are retiring. Others are running for different offices — or were driven out by redistricting. Then there are those who blame, at least partly, the dysfunctional political environment.
CNN in December spoke to one representative, Michael McCaul, a Texas Republican, who’s retiring after two decades in the House. Congress, he told the outlet, has changed for the worse.
“The level of partisanship, rancor, vitriolic debate, demonizing the other side of the aisle, not willing to work across the aisle to get good things done for the American people, and just the overall toxic environment. And then we are chained to the floor here on votes that will never become law in a lot of cases,” McCaul said.
A different Republican lawmaker speaking anonymously agreed with McCaul, saying that Washington’s chaos makes it impossible to get even small things done.
“It’s historic to be there. It’s an amazing honor. But boy, they suck a lot of the life out of you sometimes,” the lawmaker said. “For some people, it’s like, what am I doing this for?”
