Some older congressional Democrats are adamant that they do not want to seek retirement as the 2026 midterms loom, the Wall Street Journal (WSJ) reported Wednesday.
Despite some activists pressuring older House Democrats to make way for a new generation of party leaders, many elected officials do not want to retire, according to the WSJ. The report comes as some Democrats have been calling for party members to support younger candidates in the upcoming midterm elections.
“I think every Democrat over 70 should make this their last term,” Amanda Litman, the president of Run for Something, a political organization that recruits and supports younger left-wing candidates, told the WSJ.
Democratic New York Rep. Gregory Meeks, 71, told the WSJ that longtime congressional Democrats “want to keep the power” they presently have. The New York Democrat is set to seek a 14th term in the 2026 midterms, the WSJ reported.
“I don’t think there’s any reason to say that everybody in the delegation should be leaving, especially if you want to have power,” Meeks, the top Democrat on the House Foreign Affairs Committee, told the outlet. “We want to keep the power that we have.”
Meanwhile, Democratic Florida Rep. Jared Moskowitz, 44, told the WSJ that “members have to decide when they’re either done with this place, or quite frankly, when this place is done with them.”
This year, a spate of congressional Democrats have made retirement announcements, including New York Rep. Jerry Nadler, 78, Pennsylvania Rep. Dwight Evans, 71. Minnesota Sen. Tina Smith, 67 and Texas Rep. Lloyd Doggett, 78.
Still, Democratic California Rep. John Garamendi, 80, told the WSJ he thinks the “weather is shaping up to be good” for the Democratic Party.
“Particularly for members that have been here 20, 30 years, they see an opportunity,” Garamendi said.
The congressman also told the WSJ he has “no intention of retiring at all.” Garamendi indicated he plans to stay in the House until at least the 2030 election cycle — when he would be 85 years old.
“The last thing I’m going to do is tell a member whether they should seek reelection or not,” Democratic New York Rep. Yvette Clarke, 60, told the WSJ.
Similarly, Democratic New York Rep. Adriano Espaillat, 70, told the outlet that “that’s an individual decision that everybody must make.” When asked about how he would know whether it was time to retire, Espaillat — who entered the House in 2017 — told the WSJ, “Who, me? I just got here.”
Many Democrats have called for a changing of the guard in their party following former President Joe Biden stepping down from the 2024 presidential race in the aftermath of a calamitous debate.
“I respect people who have served in Congress for decades, but at a certain point, it’s just time to let some new voices in,” Luke Bronin, 46, the former mayor of Hartford, Conn., who is running in the state’s 1st congressional district against Democratic Connecticut Rep. John Larson, 77, said in his campaign announcement, WSJ reported.
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